


Teddy Lupin's Month from Hell

by Snegurochka



Series: Very Bad Week Universe [2]
Category: Harry Potter - Rowling
Genre: M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-09-18
Updated: 2010-09-18
Packaged: 2017-10-11 23:53:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 52,995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/118537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Snegurochka/pseuds/Snegurochka
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The company of teenagers was bad enough. The company of fit, <i>naked</i> teenagers – one the son of a one-night stand and the other practically family, Christ – was outrageous. The company of fit, naked, exasperating, scheming, gorgeous teenagers trying to get him either fired from his job, killed by his godfather's bloody boyfriend, or arrested for courting jailbait was just too much to take. Not to mention the thing with the walls of Malfoy Manor deciding to broadcast everyone's sexual secrets in giant glowing letters. All things considered, Teddy Lupin really was having a terrible, hellish month.</p><p>53,000 words. Scorpius/James Jr./Teddy and permutations. Hints of background Harry/Draco. Consensual sex among people aged 17, 18 and 24. Written for livelongnmarry. September 2010.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Teddy Lupin's Month from Hell

**Author's Note:**

> Written for gossymer, who won my auction at way back when, and who wanted a sequel to [Scorpius Malfoy's Very Bad Week](http://archiveofourown.org/works/105457). Enormous thanks to marguerite_26 and secretsolitaire for the beta work.

There were three things that Teddy Lupin was quite certain about: one, that it was mid-month, and thus nearly payday (thank Christ); two, that when he had woken up that morning, his situation as of this evening was not something he ever would have thought possible – well, he'd _thought_ it, obviously, but not quite– just– fuck, _anyway_ ; and three, that he would need at least four hands to be able to accurately count on each finger the number of men who would have his bollocks in a sling if they knew what he was up to at the moment.

"God, yes," groaned Scorpius, lifting himself onto his elbows and pushing back against Teddy's cock. He craned his neck around. "Now, I hate to complain, but when is Potter going to join us?"

Teddy paused, wiping the sweat from his eyes and glaring down at the pale back underneath him. "Not going to," he grit out, trying to banish James from his mind. This was not precisely the sort of activity James would approve of, after all, especially after not having been invited to participate. "Just you, Scorpius. You and that tight little arse I couldn't have last time." He pushed forward again, dragging his fingers over Scorpius's arse and around to grip his hips at the sides. He tried to lose himself in sensation again, but the kid wouldn't shut up.

"Not going to?"

"He's not _here_. Christ. You want to do this or not?"

Scorpius wrenched around again to glare over his shoulder. " _Yes_ , obviously," he pouted, "but also _yes_ , he's here, or that's someone else's nancy scarf at the door." He turned back to the mattress and dropped down, moaning. "He never did look good in red."

Teddy whirled around, his eyes frantic, to see a whisper of dark hair and the tips of two fingers curled around the door frame from the kitchen, and he closed his eyes, panting, because _fuck_ , there was not going to be any way to fix this, not going to be any way to explain to James why Teddy was sprawled out in his own living room with his cock up Scorpius Malfoy's arse, and –

Wait.

The scene flickered, as if playing out in someone else's life. Teddy blinked.

This would be a good time to backtrack from the second week of the month and figure out how in bloody hell Teddy had landed himself in this situation, the threesome that had once been so comfortable between them now a triangular sodding disaster, with infatuations mixing with love and fidelity and now secrets and a few lies sprinkled over the whole mess, and Teddy himself being altogether too old to have let two fucking teenagers land him in this stupid fucking situation in the first place.

It was only halfway through, but Teddy Lupin had already had one _hell_ of a month.

***

 **_Week 1_ **

 

It was a pitiful summer for the curse breaking business.

Although he felt some disloyalty to his adopted family for even thinking it, Teddy had somewhat assumed that Bill's clientele would pick up a bit after the main debacle in Wizarding society that spring, what with Head Auror Harry Potter having tumbled spectacularly out of the closet and taken most people's trust in law enforcement down with him.

The papers had been adamant in their half-arsed editorials that a man of _that persuasion_ could not possibly be trusted to run the Auror department – a declaration Teddy had always found curious when applied to previous public figures; was it the fear that Harry would be too busy hosting circuit parties to catch criminals? That his glitter-strewn shirts would prove a fire hazard in the field? That he wouldn't sufficiently sexually harass the women Aurors in the manner to which they had become accustomed? – but it was impossible for even high society to sustain a persecution of _Harry Potter_ in the court of public opinion.

James had even taken to moaning, his head in his hands, that his father was single-handedly introducing the novel concept of tolerance, diversity, or at the very least _privacy_ to the British Wizarding establishment at long last, a gay superhero of sorts onto which they could project all their hopes, fears and closeted sexual fantasies. Teddy could only stroke the back of James's neck and sadly agree; homophobia just wasn't what it used to be, thanks to Harry.

All of which had led Bill's business to suffer, Teddy had decided. Before, it was James and, by extension, Teddy who had drawn the Wizarding world's curiosity masked as wrath for their lack of adequate discretion about their sexuality. The curious, of course, loved to gather, point and whisper, which had been just fine with Bill.

"Yeah, he works for me," Teddy would hear Bill say gruffly at the Floo every other day in response to inquiries from busybodies and voyeurs. "Best bloody curse breaker this side of the pond, except for yours truly. What's your case?"

This would be followed by visits from young women with wide eyes and flushed cheeks, asking Bill about the intricacies of their grandmother's charmed necklace while sneaking glances at Teddy at the other desk. Fag hags in training, the lot of them; he'd spent enough time with Victoire and her friends to know one when he saw one. They were better than the alternative, though, the men sporting neat moustaches who fidgeted with ancient accounting logs charmed shut, babbling to Bill about protecting their businesses all while dabbing handkerchiefs at their foreheads every time their eyes fell to Teddy's crotch.

It was amusing, if tiresome. Sometimes, just to be an arse, Teddy would make a show of complaining about the heat in the office, using it as an excuse to shed his robes and strip down to his shirtsleeves. Opening his collar a bit too far and rolling his sleeves up, he would Summon a glass of water and drink it slowly, his head tilted back and stray drops of condensation sliding down his neck. Sometimes he would even get away with groaning in hydrated pleasure, at least until Bill sighed and threw a quill at his head.

But now, with Harry (and to a lesser extent, Draco) the new shirt-lifter on the block to ogle, Bill had been forced to confront the reality of just how many of his customers had been rubber-necking his queer little apprentice. He wasn't exactly taking it well.

"So, Victoire's been asking about you." They were sorting through past files to make sure they were properly alphabetised, something Teddy was rather certain could have been accomplished by a trained Flobberworm. The office was dead quiet, and Bill Weasley had never exactly been a small-talk sort of bloke. They'd run out of Quidditch scores to talk about yesterday morning.

Teddy glanced over at him. "Oh. Yeah, uh..." He rubbed the back of his neck, wondering why Bill seemed to think Teddy needed an intermediary to hear news from a girl who was still one of his closest friends. "Okay. Asking what?"

Bill ignored him. "Hey, you know," he began again, as if he'd just thought of it, "if you ever want to come round for dinner, I'm sure she'd love it."

Ah.

"You're not still–" he waved his hand vaguely, frowning – "uh, with James?"

Teddy bit on his lower lip, swallowing down a dozen retorts to that. _I was 'with' him right before I got to work this morning, if shoving my cock down his throat counts_. "Yeah, we're still–" he waved his hand as well, absorbing Bill's awkwardness about it and cursing himself for doing so – "together."

"Oh."

Teddy glanced up, angry at the frown lines on Bill's face. "The offer still stands, you know," he said quietly, trying to keep his voice even. "Like I told you when I started: if you've a problem with it, I can go work somewhere else. I don't need you–"

"No!" Bill exclaimed. "No, no. It's just, my sister seemed to think this whole thing might have blown over by now." There he was, waving that bloody hand again, as though even without his wand, he could magic away the icky queerness clutching to the outskirts of his family.

 _The only thing her son's going to be blowing is_ – "Yeah. No." Teddy coughed. "Not blowing over. We're good."

"Because Victoire asks about you all the bloody time." He flashed Teddy a rueful grin, but it quickly faded. "I mean, I know I wasn't, ah–" he scratched his jaw – "maybe too welcoming to you when you kids were dating, but–"

Teddy cringed.

"–well, you know. But if that's why you turned into a– I mean, I can back off, mate." He raised his hands in mock surrender. "If you still want to date Victoire, that's all right with me. I'd love it, in fact. It's all right with her mother, too, and with her– well, definitely with her aunt, and probably most of her uncles, except maybe Charlie, but that's just because he's never really seen the appeal of–" Bill stopped himself in the middle of making a gesture with both hands that looked an awful lot like a woman's figure, pressing his lips together instead and swallowing the rest of the sentence.

Teddy had to consciously restrain himself from squeezing his eyes shut and singing show tunes in a very loud voice just to drown out what sounded an awful lot like Bill whoring out his own daughter if it would mean saving his nephew from indulging in a spot of homosexuality with the black sheep of the family. "Ah, that's okay." He glanced away. "I think she's probably moved on by now."

He didn't bother telling Bill that he and Victoire had never been exclusive anyway, and that if the number of blokes she'd been able to pull while the two of them had actually been dating was any indication, she wasn't likely to have spent any nights (or hours, or _minutes_ , come to think) sleeping alone since they'd split up. _That_ thought only led him to bite his cheek to hide a grin, because thinking back on Victoire and her various perversions with her dad right there wasn't a good idea by any stretch, but honestly, Teddy often found himself itching just to tell Bill once and for all that _Victoire_ had been the one to first whisper in Teddy's ear about how much James had grown up, filling out a pair of jeans just right, and how good that firm chest of his would probably feel under Teddy's fingers, and how (with her breath hot on his neck and her tinkly laugh low against his throat) she'd very much like to watch if Teddy ever got over himself and made a move on Harry's son.

"Yeah, maybe." Bill sighed. "Her mother says she's mentioned a few blokes here and there."

Teddy cleared his throat, closing his eyes and trying to avoid pressing his hand to his groin to stave off the reaction his stupid brain had provoked in his trousers. She still regularly reminded him that he owed her a voyeurism session. "Oh, hey." He glanced up at the fluttering of owl wings soaring through the top window, relief crashing over him. "Post's here."

Bill looked just as relieved as Teddy for the distraction. He grabbed the jar of owl treats and threw a few in the air, earning a glare from the bird as it dove to catch them before sailing out the window again. In retribution, the owl dropped the parcels all over Teddy's desk.

There was the usual assortment of junk, although a strange little box caught Teddy's eye. It obviously wasn't a regular piece of parchment, but it also wasn't a big enough box to contain the usual kinds of cursed objects people sent them to look at. Teddy turned it over in his hands. It was addressed to him, the script unfamiliar.

"Ah, fuck, that's Burrett's seal, isn't it?" Bill asked, leaning over Teddy's shoulder and pointing at a different envelope. "Give it here."

Setting the box aside for now, Teddy plucked through the mess of letters for the telltale green seal that managed to make the poor letter _B_ look lewd, like two breasts hanging off a shelf, and handed it over to Bill. James had mentioned the Burrett kid more than a few times over the past school year – arsehole Slytherin from the sounds of it, with a bit too much interest in James's sex life – and since spring, the senior Burrett had for some reason made it his business to check up on the "moral fibre" of Bill's company.

"God, can't Harry just throw his miserable arse in Azkaban for harassment?" muttered Teddy.

Bill only frowned, reading the latest missive. "Soon as he does something actually illegal, Harry's promised us the corner cell. But until then, he's apparently free to send as much hate mail as he wants. Not like the Wizengamot's ever convicted anyone of this shit."

Pity, Teddy thought, especially when _that shit_ tended to include tirades against Bill's involvement with alleged moral degenerates, ignoring the legitimate needs of ordinary Wizarding citizens in order to… well, Teddy was never clear on what sort of scheming, precisely, Burrett thought the gay curse breakers of the world were so busy getting up to – coding jack-in-the-boxes to spring dildos on unsuspecting guests at children's birthday parties?

"Why are you even reading it?" sighed Teddy, flopping back in his chair. "Just burn it."

Bill shrugged. "Might be a legitimate business proposal."

Teddy raised his eyebrows.

"Know thy enemy, Lupin," said Bill, pointing a finger at Teddy. He turned the envelope upside down and shook it, a small object falling to the desk. Immediately, Teddy was on his feet with his wand drawn.

Bill nodded at him with approval but then waved his hand. "At ease."

"You don't know what–"

"No, but if it's from Burrett, the worst it'll be able to do is set the desk on fire. Ron's been watching him for me at the Ministry. Says that bloke can barely find his own arse with two hands and a map. Not likely to be sending us anything full of complex magic."

"He could have an accomplice," said Teddy. "A more talented one."

Bill approached the item. "Is the desk on fire?"

"Fine. No." Teddy poked it with his wand. "It's a... button." He picked it up. It featured a silhouette of two men kissing, with an angry red line sliced through it, like a No Smoking sign. Teddy turned it around to show Bill, who tilted his head.

"Well," he mused, "at least it's not two dicks."

Teddy grinned. "That would be better."

Bill barked a laugh as Teddy Vanished the cross-out line and pinned the thing to his chest. As soon as it was in place, though, Bill cleared his throat, looking uncomfortable. "Take it off," he muttered, glancing back at the door as if afraid a client might see.

Frowning, Teddy did as he was told, throwing the button back on his desk.

Bill rubbed his forehead. "I'll talk to Harry again," he promised, grabbing the button. They were quiet for a moment, until Bill's gruff voice returned and all seemed back to normal. He pointed at the desk. "Sort the post, if you please. There should be some other artefacts there from Mrs Tithers; said she'd send them back once she'd confirmed the Inferius in her basement wasn't her husband. Give 'em a file number and toss 'em in the evidence box."

"Er– who was it, then?"

"What?"

"The Inferius."

"Oh." Bill shrugged. "Don't know."

"Should we... do something about it?"

"Do you know what to do with an Inferius?"

"Ah. No, not exactly."

"Well, then." Bill waved his hand. "I'll bet you next month's salary that it's a tablecloth on the clothesline she forgot to put away."

"No bet."

Bill grinned and pointed. "Evidence box, all right?"

"Can I go for lunch first?"

"No." He headed back to his own office and started poking at some whirring items on his desk.

Grinning, Teddy swept the rest of the post into his pouch, resized it to fit in his shoulder bag, and headed out for a sandwich. He'd sort it later. Not as though there were clients waiting.

***

"So, guess where I've been."

Teddy glanced up as James came tumbling out of the Floo. It had been a boring day, and he wished he didn't have to actually go in and earn a paycheque like an adult when he'd rather be lying on the Potters' back lawn with James, pausing every so often in their cloud gazing for a bit of a tumble. Ah, the downside of dating a teenager. Sorting Hermione's post three days a week while he decided how to tell his father he'd rather not go into Auror training after all wasn't exactly keeping James on much of a schedule.

Idle hands, Teddy feared.

James shook the ash from his hair, stalked over to an armchair and dropped into it all in a single burst of movement. "Go on. Guess."

Teddy put his magazine down and appraised James from his vantage point, sprawled on his stomach on the bed. "On your knees at the Blind Cockerel, sucking a dick through a hole in the wall."

James considered this. "No," he said after a pause, tilting his head to the side. "But good one."

Teddy rolled onto his side, propping himself up on one elbow. "Waxing philosophic to your poor brother about the virtues of sucking cock."

"What? Why are all your guesses about cocksucking?"

Teddy gave him a helpless smile, and James broke into a grin.

"No," drawled James. "But I did do that yesterday." He swung one leg up over the overstuffed arm of the chair. "Guess again. And at least you're getting warmer."

"Hm. So if it's not about cocksucking, then it's something about Al?"

"Not quite."

"Lily?"

" _No_ , and God, don't even talk to me about Lily and cocksucking in the same sentence, okay?"

"Your mother?"

"Gah. Ew ew _ew_." James flapped his hands.

Teddy laughed. "Aha. So, that leaves your dad. Is he finally going to bring you home to meet the husband?"

James made the kind of face Teddy was sure he'd never grow out of, the one that made him look impossibly young and alarmed, like someone had just put a boogie in his birthday cake. Teddy found himself suddenly desperate to kiss that pouty bottom lip... even as James continued to flap his hands, shrieking, "What? Husband? Gaaah, what. What."

"No, God, come here," said Teddy with a laugh, reaching his hand out for James. Reluctantly, James got up and made his way to the bed, sinking down beside Teddy and shaking his head.

"Prat," he said fondly, as Teddy reached up to brush a lock of hair from James's eyes. "Anyway, there'd better not be any _husbands_ he's lodging in the back shed, but yeah, we just had tea and he did finally tell me about Malfoy's dad."

"You already knew about Malfoy's dad."

"I know, but he was all, 'It's serious, James. Not just gossip in the _Prophet_. I wanted you to know.'" He did a fairly accurate impression of Harry's concerned face and voice, and Teddy snorted.

"And then you had to pretend to be surprised but supportive. Oh, and also–"

"–to totally _not_ tell him that we've shagged his boyfriend's son? Yeah."

"Speak for yourself."

"Oh, yeah, you were the model of restraint." James rolled his eyes before leaning down to brush his lips against Teddy's. "Fine. That _I've_ shagged his boyfriend's son while you watched. Nice."

"Underage son," added Teddy. "Don't forget that part."

A flash of annoyance passed over James's face. "Oh, I haven't," he said under his breath. "Not with you reminding me every five minutes."

Teddy stared at him. "Talk to me in seven years," he muttered, "and you'll see where I'm coming from."

"Don't treat us like we're twelve, Jesus. You know what you wanted. _Still_ want, I'd wager."

Teddy pulled back, pointedly ignoring that last. "Us? Since when is there an _us_?"

"Since me and Malfoy landed in bed with you, I don't know. Just–" He rubbed his eyes, pressing his lips into a thin line. "Anyway," he continued brightly, doing what James did best and pushing any sombre mood away. "I saw him last week, by the way." He leaned in close to Teddy again, mouthing kisses up his neck and jaw.

This was not a good conversation to be having. In fact, this was a terrible conversation to be having and even a dangerous one, if Teddy wanted to get dramatic about things. It had been a not good, terrible, dangerous conversation every time they'd had it, which had been far more often than Teddy would have liked over the past two months. James had found a way to work Scorpius bloody Malfoy into their conversations at least once a week, and considering that Teddy very much did _not_ need any help keeping that damn kid on the brain, it was really getting sodding difficult to continue feigning indifference – especially when every single time James brought him up, and probably every thirty minutes or so besides, images would flash through Teddy's mind of that night the three of them had spent together, of Scorpius spreading himself open for James so beautifully – with his eyes on Teddy almost the entire time.

Teddy struggled to control his breathing, even as James's mouth moved up his neck.

"You didn't tell me this," Teddy murmured, his skin heating under James's touch. "Saw him, as in…?"

James pulled back and gave him an impatient look. "As in, I shoved my cock up his arse in the middle of Flourish and Blott's." James narrowed his eyes. "Come on."

"Okay, okay," snapped Teddy. "I don't care if you did." The idea of James and Scorpius together where Teddy couldn't see them inexplicably made his blood sear, and not in a good way. Christ, James _had_ sucked cock at Flourish and Blott's before, or at least in the alley behind, and Teddy's only reaction when James had told him about it had been to kiss him breathless and pester him for details. He wasn't ready to examine this reaction to Scorpius too closely. He leaned in to distract James with a kiss until he felt James relax, pulling back and resting his head on Teddy's shoulder.

"As in," James tried again, softer, "lurking outside Chester's trying to work up the nerve to go buy a pot of lube." He paused, grinning, and Teddy's brain provided an image of Scorpius, that bloody little brat, loitering at that corner and managing to look both as painfully naïve and effortlessly sly as he had that night in Teddy's flat.

 _Christ_. He squeezed his eyes shut for a second. _Stop fucking thinking about that_.

"That bloody kid," muttered Teddy. "Still trying to convince himself he doesn't want it, then. Did you talk to him?"

James's face melted into a grin, and Teddy suddenly feared for poor Scorpius. "Of course." James moved in closer, his lips on Teddy's ear. "I made to pass by him close like this," he breathed with a soft laugh, "and I said something like, 'If you bring the lube, I'll bring the werewolf.' Thought his dick might actually bust out of his pants at that." He bit at Teddy's neck before pulling back again, still grinning. "Course, then he had no choice but to stay there outside with me, or flee inside the shop. Guess which one he took?"

Teddy shook his head. "So he's now the proud owner of who knows how many bottles of lube and probably a few of the most expensive anal plugs. Chester knows a fool when he sees one."

"Best thing about him," agreed James.

Teddy was quiet for a minute, far too many visions rumbling through his mind of Scorpius with Chester's more creative toys lodged in various places of his body. He took a deep breath, glancing over at James and wondering if he was picturing the same thing. "You didn't really say that, did you?" he asked at last. "About the werewolf?"

James smiled.

"Oh, you miserable bastard. That poor kid."

"Not a kid," insisted James once more, eyeing Teddy slyly. "Things I know: he had a birthday last month."

Nooooo. No, no, no. Teddy took a shuddering breath, then grasped James around the back of the neck and hauled him down to the bed, his lips furiously seeking James's. "You little slag," he panted, biting at James's mouth. "Stop it."

Laughing, James pushed Teddy onto his back and crawled on top of him, fingers curled around Teddy's wrists as he pinned him. One slow roll of James's hips made Teddy shut his eyes and groan, heat already coiling through him.

"You like that," James whispered, his voice full of awe as though it was news to him that thinking about Scorpius aroused Teddy. James leaned down and bit at Teddy's collarbone, murmuring against his skin. "You do, don't you? Do you think about him?"

Teddy swallowed. He shouldn't answer that question. James's mouth moved up Teddy's neck, pausing at his ear and melting honeyed words against it.

"Do you think about me and him?" he breathed. "The way he was so eager to get fucked, to have my cock in him while you watched?"

Teddy gripped at James's hips helplessly, grinding up against him.

"He was gorgeous, wasn't he?"

"Yes," breathed Teddy at last.

"Such a bloody Slytherin," added James with a low chuckle, his lips still buried against Teddy's neck. "Following me around, trying to get in my pants like that. Maybe I _should_ fuck him again," he said, pressing down against Teddy's groin.

Teddy's fingers curled against James's arse even as a hot streak of horror jolted him. "Don't you dare," he growled, pulling James in closer.

James pulled back, eyeing him. "Well, well, well." He paused, wetting his lips. "Are you jealous?"

God, yes, he was jealous. Teddy hauled James down and kissed him soundly, his tongue heavy against James's and his body alight with thoughts of Scorpius. That he was jealous of James getting to have Scorpius – all that pale hair in his fists and against his skin, all that youthful naiveté and eagerness alive in his eyes – rather than Scorpius having James, well. He wasn't prepared to admit that to James just yet.

"Teddy." He landed back in the present to find James looking down at him, naked honesty and concern on his face. He reached out and traced his fingers down Teddy's cheek, stilling his hips. "I'm taking the piss. You know that, right?"

Teddy gazed up at him, breathing hard. "Yeah. I know." He paused, choosing his words carefully. "You _have_ been thinking about him, though."

James ducked his head down, grinning. "Yeah. Sort of. I mean, he's just this pathetic thing, isn't he, not even knowing how to ask for cock?" He smothered a laugh. "But then, I don't know, I think about him sometimes and it's like, I _remember_ that, you know? I mean, I always knew what I wanted; I didn't have any bloody repressed Malfoy genes cocking it up. But still, it was hard to ask at first." He glanced at Teddy almost shyly. "Wasn't it?"

A surge of warmth spread through Teddy's body at the memories of James a couple of years ago, before they'd got together. "You knew what you wanted," he agreed, "but you weren't so sure how it was supposed to work." He smiled, kissing James's temple.

"Fortunately, you knew all kinds of things about how it was supposed to work." James swatted at him playfully. "Bloody sex fiend."

Teddy felt his face heat. "Yeah, that's me." His fingers played with the hem of James's t-shirt. "So, what, then? You think Malfoy's still got things to learn about how it all works?"

"Of course. We barely had time to teach him the basics."

Teddy's fingers dipped lower, the pads of them sweeping gently under the waist of James's jeans. He said nothing.

"Why are you being like this?" asked James quietly, his own hand closing around Teddy's wrist to stop his exploring. He blinked at Teddy before dropping his eyes, his thumb rubbing absently over the skin of Teddy's wrist. He was quiet for a long moment, and Teddy couldn't think of what to say or even how to articulate what was wrong. "You didn't want it?" James muttered at last, so quiet Teddy barely heard. "Okay, no, that's okay." He lifted his hand away from Teddy's wrist and wiped his face. "No problem."

"James–"

"No, I was just going to say," said James, forcing his voice back to normal and adding even more bravado than usual, "we've always talked about other blokes in bed, or even had a few join us. I thought you got off on that sort of thing." His eyes searched Teddy's. "What's so different about Malfoy?"

Ah. There it was. The very thing Teddy couldn't put into words. He didn't know what was so different about Malfoy, but it was _something_. Something that made him want to keep secrets from James for the first time, to have things for himself that James didn't share. And that was what scared him most. "Nothing," he said, forcing a shrug. "Not different."

Smiling slowly, James pulled his shirt off, still straddling Teddy. "Then why don't you tell me about him," he murmured, his fingers unbuttoning Teddy's shirt and his palms smoothing over Teddy's chest. Teddy closed his eyes as James's mouth brushed over his chest and stomach, light, teasing kisses accompanied by that rough voice. "Why don't you fuck me," breathed James, his tongue darting out over one of Teddy's nipples while he glanced up to hold Teddy's gaze, "while you tell me all about the things you'd like to do to Malfoy. Everything you'd show him how to do."

Teddy fought back the hot surge in his blood. He masked it by grinning up at James. "What, you want me to tie you up and call you Malfoy? That's fairly pervy."

James's mouth didn't stop moving over Teddy's chest. "Tie me up, call me what you want, fuck me like I _know_ you wanted to fuck him that night. Doesn't matter to me."

This was a terrible idea. Utterly awful. And Teddy couldn't have said no if his life had depended on it. "Yeah?" he whispered, biting back a groan when James looked at him again and nodded.

James tugged at Teddy's jeans. "Tell me what you'd do to him."

With a groan, Teddy arched towards him, closed his eyes, and started talking.

***

Later, with the heat of James's body scorching him and the remnants of the tale he'd spun about Malfoy lingering in the air like puffs of smoke, Teddy collapsed over James's back, panting. _Scorpius_ , he was still whispering in his head, his fingers unclenching around fistfuls of imaginary blond hair.

He closed his eyes, collected himself, and felt the first jolt of horror sear through him at James's unnatural quiet and stillness.

 _Shit_.

James didn't let him linger. He wriggled out from under Teddy, pulling himself free in a jerky movement that left Teddy's prick slapping down against his thigh with an unappealing squelch. James gathered himself in a bundle at the head of the bed, his knees pulled to his chest and his eyes downcast. "Well," he said after a moment. "That was illuminating."

Teddy sat back on his heels, his mind racing. "Yeah," was all he could say. "Look, I–"

But James shook his head. "Nope. I should be careful what I wish for, I guess."

"You _said_ you wanted me to–"

"Yep. I did." James pushed himself off the bed, his muscles coiled tight and his back to Teddy. "So, glad we're on the same page about that. Malfoy is clearly a completely fuckable little bastard, so, you don't need any convincing from me."

" _James_." Teddy closed his eyes and ran his hand over his face.

"Is that just– I mean, is that what you want? Or–" James swallowed, clenching his jaw – "you've already done it, shagged him without me? You told me we were supposed to be honest about stuff like that, you know."

The accusing note in his voice broke Teddy's heart. "I haven't touched him," he said quietly. "I would have told you."

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw James nod. "Okay. Yeah. You would have." He bent to grab his shirt and jeans from the floor, heading for the loo. "So, it's just a fantasy, then."

"James, listen, I–"

James cut him off. "Hell of a fantasy, Lupin," he called, slamming the bathroom door shut behind him.

***

 **_Week 2_ **

 

On Friday, with James avoiding him and a general wish for a Time-Turner occupying most of his waking thoughts, Teddy had busied himself taking inventory on ink pots, parchment, and sandwich bread when the door flew open.

"Come on, kid." Bill strode into the office and stopped short, punching one fist into his other hand. "I've got a lead. Go change your hair and put on something decent."

Teddy frowned at him, his quill stuck in mid-air.

Bill squinted, and Teddy glanced down at his work robes. Nothing fancy, but it wasn't as though this were the Ministry. Bill had never cared before. He gestured in Teddy's direction, scowling. "You've got crisps on you. Christ." He checked his watch. "One hour. Go home and change, then meet me at Malfoy Manor."

That stopped him gaping. "I– what? No, come on. Don't make me go there." The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them. Bill raised an eyebrow. "Just, they're such twats, the Malfoys." He cleared his throat and pushed his parchment aside. "Aren't they? Come on."

"They're also hosting the cocktail party of the year tonight, and we need business."

"Since when do you care about hobnobbing with the rich and famous?"

"Since I figured out the correlation between the amount of money in one's vaults, and the probability of one's enemies hexing something you don't want hexed, that's when." Bill crossed his arms over his chest and glared down at him. "You want a paycheque, kid? Then get the pink out of your nancy hair, put on a clean set of robes, and get that arse-kissing mouth of yours out to Wiltshire by seven-thirty. I'll meet you there."

Teddy sighed, flinging his quill down.

"Odds are good that Harry'll be there," called Bill over his shoulder as he headed to the door again, adding something Teddy didn't quite catch about _speaking of Malfoys and arse-kissing mouths_. "See if he won't introduce you to some of the wealthier wankers with a cursed safe we can crack."

Slumping down in his chair, Teddy tried not to think about how much he wasn't up to chatting up either Draco or that petulant, gorgeous brat of his.

***

Teddy held off as long as he could, but by eight p.m., he figured he was risking a fang earring through his scrotum if he didn't get his balls to Malfoy fucking Manor and put a smile on for the rich and famous. Not that Draco Malfoy was exactly the pinnacle of social stardom anymore – divorced, for one, and with his shadowed face turned away from cameras ready to catch him emerging from Harry's flat every other morning, for another, he didn't exactly draw the Wizarding world's finest these days.

Which was probably how Teddy found himself face to face with no less than Maurice bloody Burrett in his first ten minutes in the door.

Appraising Teddy from behind a bushy, curled moustache – honestly, was he meant to be a villain from a theme park? – he bent his thick fingers around a champagne flute and narrowed his eyes. "I know you," he began, his voice rough with scotch. Teddy rolled his eyes while squinting at the colour of the liquid in that flute. "You're that werewolf's boy, aren't you?" he snarled, a moustache hair fluttering under his nose.

Teddy glanced around, wondering if anyone would care – or notice – if he just hexed the bastard's balls off and threw them in the artichoke dip. He had no idea why Draco felt the need to invite the likes of Burrett to this soiree, but he figured causing a scene wouldn't endear him to Bill, Harry or Draco, and at least for the first two, he did actually care about that. He nodded solemnly, having heard werewolf taunts so many times he'd lost count. It used to make him angry, defensive, even shrill. Now he tended to take it all in stride, all while marking a spot in his memory for the person who said it. They had better hope never to need anything from him, or anyone he knew, in future. He leaned towards Burrett, dropping his voice. "I've terrific strength, you know," he said. "And – now this is a well-kept secret–" He clinked his glass against Burrett's – " _three_ balls. The bottom one we only use at full moon."

" _Lupin_."

Teddy barely had time to register Burrett's sputtering face before a strong grip closed around his arm and hauled him away. Bill's eyes darted around the room.

"Cut it out," Bill muttered. "Christ. Can't leave you alone for three minutes."

Teddy shook him off.

"Maurice, so nice to see you," Bill added to Burrett, the growl in his voice belying the amiable words. He squared his shoulders and rested his hand on the wand holster at his hip, and not for the first time, Teddy wished he could be Bill bloody Weasley when he grew up.

"Weasley," snarled Burrett, appraising Bill and Teddy. "I see Malfoy is well on his way to establishing ties with his _own kind_."

"Oh yes, sir." Teddy leaned closer, as if imparting a great secret. "We're all playing a round of gay Quidditch tomorrow afternoon, if you're free?"

Bill elbowed him in the chest and then led him away, releasing his arm only when they'd reached the miniature quiche table. " _I'm_ not playing gay Quidditch with you lot," was all he said and, having braced for a tongue-lashing, Teddy only grinned.

"Harry will be so disappointed," he deadpanned.

Ignoring him, Bill appraised the crowd. "Come on. Get to business. Got some parchment?" He gestured at Teddy's shoulder bag.

He nodded.

"Good. That one's been eyeing you." Bill gestured across the room with the hand holding his drink. Teddy followed his gaze to see a slinky ginger haired woman in a vaguely inappropriate cocktail dress glance over at them. She was probably pushing forty, although trying to mask it with a tube of ruby lipstick. He arched a brow at Bill.

"You're not serious."

"Damn right I'm serious. Ask her about her jewels, where she keeps 'em. Tell her you can upgrade her safe for a very special price of, fuck, I don't know, five hundred Galleons."

"I think you're more in her age range," he said pointedly, but Bill only grinned.

"Yeah? Think again." He glanced at her. "Look at the fake tattoo on her shoulder; that sure ain't for blokes my age. If she's not after twenty-four-year-old cock, I'll give her that safe for free."

Teddy swallowed down a blast of bile. "Okay, nowhere in the job description did it say I had to–"

Bill laughed. "Totally optional."

"How do you know when fortysomething women want cock my age, anyway?" asked Teddy defensively.

Bill rolled his eyes. "Because I'm married to one, Christ. How do you think?" He knocked back another finger of whisky, and Teddy tried not to choke on his own drink.

"Ah. Right." Honestly, the entire repressed Wizarding world would explode if any of the hypocritical arses running it ever started admitting to all the shenanigans going on in their own bloody bedrooms. And they had the gall to look James – honest, pure, gorgeous _James_ – in the face and pass judgement. His knuckles whitened around his glass.

Bill wiped his mouth and seemed to backtrack. "Uh. I mean, nothing I don't know about, you understand. We've got an arrangement." He avoided Teddy's eyes. "Okay, shouldn't have said that."

"Let's pretend you didn't," said Teddy quickly, because now on top of everything else, he had to picture his boss's ridiculously beautiful wife – and Victoire's bloody _mother_ – on her hands and knees, Bill maybe nursing a drink just as he was now, watching her take a young, firm cock up her –

"Right." Bill puffed his cheeks out, exhaling. "So, okay, don't mind her, then. I'm going to find Harry."

"Yep, you do that." Teddy slumped against a wall as Bill disappeared into the crowd. Pushing a hand through his (new, boring, brown) hair, he assessed the crowd, trying _not_ to look for anyone in particular. He saw Bill going up to Harry and punching him in the arm; some other Ministry types fingering the peanut bowl and laughing at each other's bad jokes; loud men he didn't know clapping each other on the back and kicking the house-elves out of the way after claiming a fresh drink or a tiny, awkward quiche to shove in their mouths... He sighed. Exactly the kind of crowd he tried to avoid in his life. Hell, he'd taken the job with Bill just so he _could_ avoid plastic Ministry festivals like this. The pair of them were supposed to be renegade curse breakers, not vermin scrounging around a black-tie function hoping for scraps to fall from the tables.

He turned to avoid the interested gaze of another older woman – honestly, where did Draco find them all? – and immediately halted. Hovering in one of the entranceways, as through trying to decide whether or not to force himself into the room or flee in the other direction, was Scorpius.

Rumpled blond hair framed his face, not quite as shaggy as James's but with a delightful brush over his ears and across his brow. His angled face and full lips were set in a guarded expression, his eyes fiercely scanning the room. Elegant robes wrapped around his lithe frame, and Teddy could see the dusting of light hair and the tension in his forearm muscles where he gripped the door frame, his sleeve falling open.

He looked older.

No, that wasn't possible. Teddy squeezed his eyes shut. Not a good train of thought. It had been exactly two months since that night, not two years. He wasn't older. He was the same, the very same, still a confused teenager with a crush and a penchant for trouble. James could mess around with him if he really needed to, but Teddy knew that he himself had to keep his distance.

Scorpius's eyes landed on him. A dozen expressions flitted over his face in quick succession – disbelief, alarm, interest, arousal... No. Teddy made that one up. But he couldn't look away. He raised his glass a fraction and inclined his head, giving Scorpius a lazy smile. The kid's cheeks immediately flushed, a grin tugging at the corners of his mouth, and he dropped his eyes. Teddy was desperate to know what images were flashing through his mind right then.

"Well! Bill said business was slow, but I didn't think it was so bad he'd drag you here, too."

Teddy turned to see Harry's warm smile, his hand clapping Teddy on the shoulder. Teddy snorted. "Yeah, well. We go where the curses are, apparently."

"You look like you'd rather be anywhere else." Harry's face was sympathetic.

"You too."

"Ah." Harry dropped his hand, smiling. He glanced around the room, and Teddy couldn't help but notice that his eyes immediately found and lingered on Draco. "It's not so bad." He glanced back, caught Teddy's knowing look, and cleared his throat.

Teddy decided not to push it. "No, I guess it isn't. Free hors d'oeuvres, anyway."

"Yeah." Harry barked a laugh. "There's that. Hey, have you met Draco's son?"

Teddy stared at him.

"Draco says he's been talking about careers at every turn this summer. Has a million questions about magical artefacts and curse breaking and how one goes about training for it. Stuff like that. You should talk to him."

"I– okay."

"Oh, there he is now. Oi, Scorpius!"

Teddy swallowed hard. Fuck. Scorpius, still hovering in the doorway, spun around at the sound of his name. His eyes darted between Harry and Teddy, then back over his shoulder as if scanning for an escape route. Slowly, he made his way over, his eyes never leaving Teddy.

"Hey," said Harry awkwardly. "Hi. You remember me?"

Both Teddy and Scorpius turned to blink at him.

"Um, yes, sir," said Scorpius politely, shooting Teddy a sideways glance.

"Right." Harry lodged a hand in his hair, flushing. "This is my godson, Teddy Lupin. He works as a curse breaker. Your dad says you've got some questions about that career, so I thought maybe you two should meet."

Scorpius ignored Teddy for a moment, turning to Harry with an impish glint in his eye. "Is that what you and my dad talk about?"

"Er–"

"Hey, Scorpius," said Teddy, because he never could stand awkwardness, even though every Slytherin he'd ever met seemed to thrive on creating it. "Nice to meet you." Teddy held out his hand.

His lips parting, Scorpius gazed down at it for a moment before extending his own. The handshake that ensued could probably have been classified as downright pervy, and certainly not one that should be taught at business schools. Scorpius swept his thumb over Teddy's while the tips of his fingers lingered against Teddy's wrist. He held it much longer than he should have, both of them looking down at their hands rather than at each other, and thank fuck Harry was busy waving at a house-elf for another drink, because when Teddy did finally raise his head to look at Scorpius, he wasn't sure he was able to hide the streak of desire that had jolted through him.

That bloody handshake was the first time he'd actually touched the kid, after all. He swallowed, breathing hard, and allowed himself a small smile of triumph when he realised that Scorpius was coiled tight, his jaw set and his face alight.

So, he remembered, then. Not that Teddy ever doubted it, but it was nice to have confirmation. Scorpius remembered every bit of what had happened between the two of them and James that night, and he was probably reliving it in his mind right that second.

"So." Teddy couldn't help himself. "What's a nice kid like you doing asking after curse breaking? Surely you're too young to know of troublesome things like that?"

Scorpius pressed his lips together, his eyes darting to Harry. "I'm not that young," he muttered.

Teddy hid a grin. "So you couldn't possibly know about–"

" _No_." Scorpius scowled at him. "I don't know anything about cursed objects, okay? God, shut up."

"Scorpius!" Harry looked scandalised, but Teddy nudged him in the shoulder, laughing.

"It's all right, Harry." His eyes landed on Scorpius. "We've met before. I was only taking the piss."

"Ah." Harry glanced between them. "Wait, you have?"

Oh, why not. Watching Scorpius sweat like this was too much fun. "He's a friend of James's. We've sat around a few times, listening to those tragic guitar players James favours." He wet his lips. "Haven't we, Malfoy?"

The kid was pale as a ghost. "Yeah. Guitar." He made an awkward gesture with his hands, possibly intending to play Harry a few bars of air guitar but succeeding only in what looked, from Teddy's point of view, like a wanking gesture. As if realising what he was doing, he abruptly shoved his hands in his pockets.

"I didn't know you knew James." Harry looked bewildered. "He's not mentioned it." _Even after I told him I was screwing Malfoy père_ , Teddy supplied mentally for him, suddenly feeling a bit sorry for Harry.

"Well, they're not close. Malfoy here _is_ still a Slytherin, after all." He leaned in a bit closer to Scorpius. "Can't trust those little buggers, can you?" He winked, and thought Scorpius's eyes might roll back in his head.

He made a strangled sound. "Excuse me, Mr Potter. Good to, ah, see you, Lupin." With a parting glare at Teddy, Scorpius stumbled off.

Harry watched him for a moment before turning back to Teddy. "Strange kid."

"You don't know the half of it."

Harry grinned. "And I probably don't want to." He finished his drink and wiped his mouth, his gaze already wandering again. "Well. I'd better, uh, pay my respects to the host."

Teddy bit down a laugh. "Sure," he said casually. "Of course." He hoped to hell Draco had the good sense never to tell Harry about their history. That was all Teddy sodding needed.

***

Twenty minutes later, Teddy had managed to lure two Fleur-Delacours-in-training into an impromptu sales pitch about all the cursed antiques probably lining their parlours, and had agreed to a business lunch next week with a balding, waistcoated clerk who inquired after his Metamorphmagus abilities in dodgy enough ways that Teddy became convinced the man thought he was a prostitute.

He threw filthy glares at Bill every time he passed, to which Bill only smirked and tossed back another two fingers of whisky.

In defiance, he threw his bag aside in the entranceway, all the carefully noted addresses and curse problems of the rich and famous tucked away inside. He was sick of whisky and champagne, sick of his tame hair and the empty holes in his ears, sick of all these people eyeing him knowingly and nodding to each other, as though there was some obvious correlation between werewolf parentage and queerness, and most of all, he was sick of _Malfoys_.

He sighed. James was the only one truly deserving of a medal for gay bravery, coming out the way he'd done and never looking back, no matter who might be catcalling him – even when it came from his own family. Teddy was long past the age of schoolyard taunts, and he mostly got to live the way he wanted to, but it still stung, being under the microscope like this. It never stopped making him self-conscious.

And then there was Scorpius, circling the edges of the room with his eyes glued to Teddy, instantly averting them whenever Teddy caught him at it. That infuriating little Slytherin spawn, mining his grandfather's Dark Arts books for mind control games, sauntering into Teddy's flat that night with his hair falling into his eyes and that nervous edge to his clenched jaw, convincing both Teddy and James that he was just an innocent pawn, when he'd set the whole thing up himself.

As Scorpius slipped behind another pillar to continue his lurking, Teddy settled back against a far wall and indulged himself. Why not? James already thought he fancied the kid, he'd already dug himself a hole a mile deep by ever agreeing to that threesome in the first place, never mind agreeing to tell James his filthy fantasies. It was Scorpius's fault they were even in this situation in the first place, he and James.

Maybe Scorpius deserved to be punished for opening this stupid can of worms. Teddy took in a long breath and wet his lips, watching Scorpius peer out from behind his pillar, eyes scanning the room.

Oh, how Teddy wanted nothing better than to pull the little brat over his knee and spank him rotten, make him writhe and beg in Teddy's lap while James circled them, his shirt open and maybe the lube already warming in his hand, giving Teddy orders in that low, rough voice he took on whenever he was aroused. He'd tell Teddy what he wanted to see, tell him to press Scorpius open and finger him in between each blow, make him so hard he had to rub himself on Teddy's trousers to get himself off, and at one command from James, Scorpius would come all over Teddy, spilling hot and filthy in his lap with his arse up, reddened and bare, and Teddy would push him off, satisfied with the mess they'd made, shove him onto the bed and let James pounce on him, trapping Scorpius between his thighs and opening his trousers, pressing his cock to Scorpius's arse until the little brat was begging for it, raising himself to his hands and knees and letting James split him open with his –

"So. Fancy meeting you here."

Teddy sucked in a long, startled breath, clenching his fist around his champagne flute. The body beside him stood an arm's length away but still managed to fill their corner of the room with his presence. It had been awhile since Teddy had last stood so close to him, and if he hadn't just been caught with his dick halfway through the most inappropriate fantasy about the man's sodding _son_ , Teddy might even be able to appreciate the memory of that last time they'd stood so close. As it were, he had some trouble turning around.

"You weren't precisely invited, is what I mean to say, and so I can only imagine you werewolves stick together, is that it?" Draco paused, and darting his eyes to the side, Teddy saw him nod towards Bill across the room. He leaned closer. "And much as I would like to, it would be terribly rude of me to kick you out." At that, his gaze wandered in the other direction; Teddy followed it until it swept past Harry, refilling his drink at the bar.

"I hear it's best not to anger the Aurors in one's life," Teddy agreed, having finally caught his breath and become able to carry on a somewhat normal conversation. "Nor the curse breakers," he added, giving Draco a pointed look.

"Nor the werewolves," Draco shot back, the corners of his mouth turning up.

"Well, well, well," drawled Teddy, inching closer. "Not still nursing that werewolf kink of yours, I hope?" he said quietly, enjoying the way Draco turned his head away, his cheeks flushed. "Don't tell me you've had Bill, too?" he continued. "I could use some intel on that one, you know. He's a bit too squeaky clean and won't let the rest of us forget it."

"Don't be crass," murmured Draco, but his eyes had that telltale Malfoy look of both playfulness and severity. "And before you get too cocky, Mr Lupin, I suggest you keep your eyes off my son for one bloody second tonight, hm?" The playfulness disappeared as the severity hardened, and Teddy choked on his champagne.

He hit himself in the chest and then glared at Draco. "Trust me; I'm not in the market."

A shadow draped across Draco's face, and his eyes pinned Teddy to the spot. "I hope that's true," he said quietly after an uncomfortable pause. He leaned in closer. "I certainly wouldn't want to be you if your boyfriend was ever in a position to tell Auror Potter that you've cheated on him." He tilted his head to the side, scanning Teddy's face for a reaction.

Teddy clenched his jaw but remained still, his gaze locked on Draco.

"My son has been talking of curse breaking and magical artefacts all summer, Lupin," continued Draco, sipping from his glass while still managing to threaten Teddy. "Now, why might that be?"

"Best job there is," said Teddy with a shrug.

"Hardly." Draco appraised him again. "If, as Harry just told me, my son and his are, surprisingly, friends, and if that means my son has encountered your presence with James in some capacity, and _if_ ," he drawled, his eyes like ice, "I ever find out you have done a single thing to encourage this miserable crush he seems to have on you and your profession–"

"Draco, come on. I don't even–"

"–I will make sure you never step foot in a Potter, Weasley, or Malfoy circle ever again," hissed Draco, cutting him off. "That should sufficiently ruin your life and career, wouldn't you say?"

Teddy narrowed his eyes to keep himself from rolling them.

"Do I make myself clear?"

"Perfectly," drawled Teddy. "You realise, of course, that you're only putting ideas in my head."

Draco glared daggers at him.

"Besides, I have it on reputable authority that he's been spending more than platonic time with Daisy Parkinson."

Draco gave him a pitying look. "Lupin." He crossed his arms over his chest. "My son is no more shagging Daisy Parkinson than you are. After her own joyous experience with teenage pregnancy, her mother's all but got a chastity belt on her, for one, and for another–" He stopped, pressing his lips together.

Teddy waited.

"I've _eyes_ ," Draco bit out at last. "I didn't need to find his stash of hirsute lorry driver porn to guess that his inclinations do not lean towards the fairer sex. Now, keep your paws to yourself, and we won't have any problems."

With a sigh, Teddy took a drink, wondering when his entire life had become one big jumble of lies. He held up his hands, the thumb and forefinger of one barely circling his glass. "Paws are right here," he promised. He let his voice drop a bit at the words, though, placing a bit too much emphasis on Draco's damn werewolf metaphor. It was worth it to see the flush crawl up Draco's neck. "But you know, if you start digging into my sex life, you're leaving me wide open to dig into yours."

Draco's jaw visibly tensed, despite his attempt at a nonchalant façade. He glanced over his shoulder to where Harry was still chatting with Bill at the bar. "We've no secrets."

"No, of course you don't." Teddy nodded. "That must be why Auror Potter is so wonderfully understanding whenever I bring up your werewolf fetish at Sunday dinners."

The twitch in Draco's jaw was almost comical. "I haven't a _werewolf fetish_ ," he ground out. "It was _once_ , you miserable bastard, and it was–"

Teddy grinned, placing his palm over Draco's chest. "I know what it was," he said softly, leaning in close to Draco's ear. "Relax, and quit threatening me. You mind your Potter, and I'll mind mine, hm?" He stepped away, pleasantly buzzed from the drink and the warmth of the room. He caught sight of only a corner of Draco's pinched expression as he strode off across the ballroom for a long overdue beer. When he glanced back, Draco was gone and from behind a pillar, Scorpius was watching him.

***

After another beer and an embarrassingly long amount of time arguing with a bartender named Herb about the merits of pigs-in-a-blanket versus miniature gherkins, Teddy had become famished enough to go in search of real food.

He hadn't spent much time in Malfoy Manor, but he'd nosed around other wealthy abodes before when on a case. The kitchens always had to be out of sight of the main entertaining areas, and usually accessible only by taking a few well timed twists and turns down abandoned corridors.

"Ah!" he said to himself in triumph as he saw a bright room peeking out from a set of swinging doors down the end of the latest hallway. "There you are, you and your hidden ham sandwiches, your..."

The words died on Teddy's lips as he approached the doors and caught a flash of blond hair and the dark robes of the Aurors. He stopped dead, flattening himself against the wall.

"Not here." The voice was breathless.

"Shhh."

They were far away, down the corridor and through the swinging kitchen doors, but as the doors flapped shut behind them, Teddy could see them through a small round window. Harry had Draco crowded against a wall, his lips close to Draco's ear as he whispered something. Draco's face shuttered for a moment and then melted, his eyes falling shut and his entire body seeming to sway under Harry's touch. Catching him with a strong hand over Draco's chest, Harry moved his head a fraction to brush his lips over Draco's. With a small nip, Harry tugged Draco's bottom lip between his teeth, and Draco's fists clutched at the front of Harry's robes to haul him closer.

Christ. Teddy didn't normally like to think of Harry – his godfather, and his lover's father, for pete's sake – in this sort of situation, but he couldn't quite look away, and he couldn't deny they were hot together. And not exactly because of Harry. Swallowing around a low groan of frustration, Teddy let himself imagine another blond underneath a pushy Potter like that, face falling slack with pleasure as strong hands gripped him and showed him what –

"Oh no. Oh, bugger. What are you doing here? What are _they_ doing here? Christ on a bloody Cleansweep. I'm going to vomit. Or pass out. Or kill all of you. Honestly, Lupin, as if I've not enough to deal with, with my nancing father and his Auror boyfriend snogging like it's a private bloody picnic, but now _you're_ getting your rocks off watching them, and that's just, it's not fair, because I–"

Teddy whirled around and clamped his hand over Scorpius's mouth. He tilted his head to the side and gave him a pointed look. Furrowing his brow, Scorpius bit at his hand.

Hissing, Teddy dropped it. "Shut the fuck up," he whispered fiercely, grabbing Scorpius's arm and hauling him back down the corridor, leaving Harry and Draco to whatever they planned to use that kitchen for.

"Quit– manhandling– me," spat Scorpius, shrugging free when they'd reached another corridor leading back to the ballroom. "Beastly," he muttered under his breath, but Teddy saw the way his cheeks flushed and his chest was heaving. He pushed down his own dirty thoughts about Malfoys and their _werewolf thing_.

"What are you doing down here?"

"I _live_ here, Lupin. And I'm a growing teenager. How am I meant to develop proper muscle tone with nothing but gherkins for supper?"

Teddy wanted to laugh, but Scorpius seemed deadly serious, dropping his gaze to his body and sighing in disappointment.

"Besides, someone has to watch what _you're_ up to, sneaking around my house like this."

"Ah." Teddy grinned. "Following me, are you?"

" _No_. Maybe." Scorpius scowled. "Absolutely not. Just making sure you aren't stealing anything."

Teddy nudged him with his shoulder. "You missed me. Go on. Admit it."

"I did not. Fuck off." He nudged back with a bit more force, pushing Teddy away. "This _bloody_ party," wailed Scorpius, lodging a hand in his hair. "All I wanted was _one_ quiet night at home where I don't have to eat dinner with my father and pretend he is _not_ actually unable to sit still because his arse had Harry Potter's cock up it so much at lunch, _one_ night where there's not someone knocking at the door begging to interview the newest bloody faggot on the block, and I don't mean me, and, and–" he gestured towards the ballroom, his eyes furious – "he goes and throws _this_ thing, and I'm meant to parade out there like it's the highlight of my summer, and stupid Potter's dad and his stupid – _Hey, Scorpius, do you remember me_?"

The impression wasn't bad, and Teddy bit down a laugh.

" _Honestly_!" Scorpius stamped his foot. "What is bloody wrong with the adults in my life? You're buggering my father, you stupid arse! I've hardly forgotten who you are!" He trailed off in a wail and dropped his head to his hands, slumping against the wall.

Sighing, and almost grateful for the tirade – since it was difficult to maintain an attraction to a brat having a tantrum – Teddy placed a hand on Scorpius's shoulder in what he hoped was sympathy.

But Scorpius only jerked his head up, frantic eyes falling to Teddy's hand before he pulled away again. "And anyway, what are _you_ doing here? Why not bring Potter and complete the hell that is my life? Oh, wait, is he hiding behind a plant?" He pretended to crane his neck to look. "I hardly need you prancing around my living room throwing flirty glances at me right in front of my bloody father. Do you know what he'd do to me if he ever found out we'd–" he broke off, blushing and trying to mask it. "Or what he'd do to _you_ , dear God. You don't even know the sort of manacles my grandfather still keeps in the basement, the sort of things he says about werewolves."

"You say those things, too," Teddy reminded him, leaning against the wall with his arms folded over his chest.

"Yes, but I don't mean them," Scorpius shot back. "Not really." He tried, and failed, to keep his gaze from wandering to Teddy's crotch. Teddy just watched him, amused.

"You are aware," said Teddy, "that I'm not actually a werewolf, aren't you?"

Scorpius raised his eyes to the ceiling as if exasperated. " _Yes_ , Lupin, I am aware. Although you could certainly fool the Registry officials if they ever saw the size of that prick of yours. And why don't you just shut up."

Teddy was quiet for a moment. When Scorpius didn't make a move to leave, Teddy ventured out again. "Hey, Malfoy?"

He earned a glare.

"This thing with your dad and Harry? It's kind of insane, for sure, and I know it's caught you off guard."

Scorpius snorted, looking away.

"But it's not the end of the world. I promise."

"Oh no? And what do you know of it?"

"I know a few things."

"Oh, right. About shagging my dad." Scorpius pressed his lips together. "Fantastic. I feel so much better now."

Teddy winced.

"You didn't really, did you?" Finally, Scorpius turned to face Teddy, his expression pained but wide open. There was genuine confusion and distress there, and Teddy had to stop himself from leaning forward and running his fingertips down the side of Scorpius's face.

"No," he lied.

It was worth it to see the relief take over Scorpius's features. He slumped against the wall, sighing.

"I know a few things," Teddy tried again, "about things that take you by surprise. And about wishing that other people would understand how you feel about things."

Scorpius glanced up at him, his scowl fading. "That doesn't even make sense." He eyed Teddy for a long moment, the tantrum still etched on his face. "What's wrong with your hair?" he said at last, squinting at Teddy.

Teddy gave him a lopsided smile. "How do you know this isn't my everyday look?" He tilted his head to the side. "Maybe the other was just one time." He thought back to Scorpius's eyes on him from the bed while James moved over him, pushing inside, making Scorpius arch against him and his eyes flutter closed.

"No," said Scorpius suspiciously. "More like the other way around."

"Oh, you think you know me now, do you?"

"Maybe." Scorpius lifted his chin.

"Yeah? What do you know?"

He expected a smart retort, some continuation of this ridiculous banter they seemed to have fallen into. He wasn't ready for the silence that followed, the parting of Scorpius's lips as he gazed at Teddy, the way his eyes softened and his shoulders sagged ever so slightly. He wasn't ready for the colour that rose high on Scorpius's cheeks or the lock of hair that fell into his eyes as he ducked his head. And Teddy really wasn't ready for his own reaction, watching Scorpius in this rare moment of shyness.

Then, just as quickly as it had come, the moment was over. Shaking his head and swallowing, Scorpius strode off down the hall and back towards the ballroom. Silently, Teddy watched him go.

***

In hindsight, Teddy should have seen it coming. It had only been ten minutes, after all, and the way Scorpius's churning emotions had been written all over his face really could only indicate one thing. Teddy wound his way through the corridors looking for a loo not likely to be occupied by a drunk party guest, and when he found one, he truly, honestly had just been looking to splash some cool water on his face and maybe steal one of Draco's expensive towels.

He truly, honestly hadn't been looking for anything else.

It wasn't that he hadn't seen the kid naked before, or seen his cock before, or seen the way he pulled his bottom lip under his teeth and let his face completely melt into unobstructed bliss when something pleasurable was being done to his bits, but that time before, with James and Teddy watching him for just such a reaction, there remained the possibility that it had all been an act.

As Teddy gripped the doorframe, peering around the door and taking in the sight of Scorpius sliding his palm over his prick and gasping for breath, he could no longer pretend that what he'd seen before might have been an act. And he could no longer bloody pretend that this kid and his full prick didn't present the most alluring sight Teddy had encountered since the first time he'd shoved James's trousers around his thighs and sucked his cock down to the root.

A small noise must have escaped his lips because the next thing he knew, Scorpius was frozen in mid-pull, his eyes darting around the overlarge chamber until they landed on Teddy. There wasn't really any use hiding, or pretending he hadn't been watching like the pervert he was. The room was bigger than a regular loo ought to be, but it wasn't exactly a maze.

Teddy held Scorpius's gaze, moving out from behind the door and closing it quickly behind him. "Just needed the loo," he said, as calmly as he could. "Didn't know it was occupied." He locked the door, not letting himself question any plans he might have that would require it.

Scorpius stared at him, his hand still clenched around his cock – which, if Teddy's quick glance was correct, had not wilted the slightest at this interruption, but had thickened even more. "It's, yeah. Occupied," stuttered Scorpius. He moved his hand away at last and tried to cover himself. "Look, it's not what you–"

"Not what I think?" Teddy let his lips slide into a seductive grin, the kind that used to work wonders on James a couple of years ago. Still did, come to think. He stepped forward, slow, steady paces bringing him closer to Scorpius and his shoved-down trousers. Teddy's mouth went dry.

"No. Well, okay, it is. But–"

"What I think," Teddy interrupted, "is that something out there got you fairly hot and bothered, so much that you had to sneak into the loo at your dad's party and wank yourself stupid. And what I _think_ ," he pressed on, even as Scorpius opened his mouth to object, "is that since the last person you were talking to was me, and since I just might be the thing that sent you in here in the first place–" he paused as he reached Scorpius, who had backed himself into the wall by the sink, grasping at his trousers. Teddy leaned in close but stopped short of touching him. He let his breath tickle Scorpius's ear, though, hardly able to hold himself back when the kid began to shiver – "I think I should get to watch the show."

Scorpius's eyes fluttered closed and he tilted his head back. Christ, the kid was responsive. Almost more than James had been at that age, all bright-eyed eagerness and moaning delirium whenever Teddy even glanced in his direction, never mind let lewd suggestions come out of his mouth. As Scorpius opened his eyes again, though, any resemblance to James melted away. A sly smile slid over his lips. "I'm starting to think you like watching more than doing, Lupin," he challenged.

Teddy backed up a step, removing himself from Scorpius's personal space but letting his eyes very deliberately fall down the kid's body, remaining fixed on his open trousers. "You're still not old enough for doing," he murmured, folding his arms over his chest and settling back against the opposite wall. "But when you are," he added before Scorpius could object, "there won't be any question left in your pretty little head about what I _like_." His eyes slid back up at the last word, and he held Scorpius's gaze as the kid's face crumpled and he groaned, his fist sliding over his prick again.

"Call him," panted Scorpius.

"What?"

"That mirror of yours. Like he did before. That's your thing, isn't it?" He paused again, sweeping his thumb over the head of his cock in slow circles and struggling to keep his breathing even.

"You want James to see you like this?"

"I–" The kid lost his nerve. " _No_. I just– It was only an idea. I don't even–"

Teddy reached into his pocket. "This the mirror you're talking about?"

With a moan, Scorpius bent over and started fisting himself again, and Teddy suddenly got a very clear image of what he must have looked like that day in the Room of Requirement when James had pulled Teddy up on the mirror to listen to them. Scorpius got off on the idea of the _three_ of them, Teddy realised, not just two.

"James," Teddy murmured, holding the glass up to his face, but even as he did it, he wasn't sure this was a terribly good idea. James was still pissed off about the Scorpius fantasy; calling him under these circumstances could lead to only one of two things: Teddy's eternal forgiveness or eternal damnation. He decided to take the chance. "Come on, don't be mad. I've got something for you."

Scorpius was waiting, watching him, his dick hard in his loosened fist.

Bugger. " _James_ ," whispered Teddy, following it with a muttered tracking charm. He got a vision back of the mirror's twin lying abandoned in James's darkened bedroom. Teddy was stricken. They _always_ carried their mirrors. Always.

In hindsight, he made the decision about what happened next out of anger. Betrayal met with betrayal.

He snapped the thing shut and shoved it back in his pocket. "He's not around," he told Scorpius, settling back against the wall and letting his hand wander down to his own groin. He adjusted himself, watching Scorpius's eyes flutter closed. "Let me see you."

If Scorpius wanted to object, he didn't quite have the stamina to hold out. "Fuck, Lupin," he muttered, a dark flush extending down the open collar of his shirt as he began stroking himself again. "Fuck you and fuck Potter," he added, panting. "Can't even have a normal bloody wank anymore without you two showing up in my head."

Teddy bit his lower lip, pressing his hand against his groin. "Yeah? Tell me."

Scorpius moaned. "No. God. Can't. Just. He's yours, I know that, and I can't have him, or you, but–" His prick bulged through his fingers as he picked up speed, wet and dark and thick. "You bloody bastards. Can't stop... thinking about it." He came in a beautiful rush, doubling over and letting his mouth fall open.

Teddy watched with reverence, wanting to bruise that delicate mouth and lick every drop of come from those pristine fingers. He wasn't going to do this – Christ, this was not part of the plan at _all_ , to the degree there even was a plan – but he couldn't help it. He tore his robes open and fumbled with his trousers, grasping his dick before he could think twice. "You think about this?" he whispered, moving towards Scorpius and fisting himself hard.

Scorpius slid down the wall, his eyes hooded and his lips still parted. He looked both blissed out and agonised at the same time. "All the time," he choked out even as he hit the floor, his eyes glued to Teddy's hand around his dick. "Let me– can I–" He leaned forward, hesitating with his mouth just inches from Teddy's prick. Teddy slowed down, holding himself out of reach. "Let me?" breathed Scorpius again, blinking up at Teddy, and a shudder ran through Teddy's body. Bloody hell.

Breathing hard, he shook his head. "Too young," he whispered.

Scorpius swallowed. "Seventeen now. Same as Potter was."

Christ, that look on his face was going to be the death of Teddy, but he held firm. He shook his head again, a slow, steady movement, keeping his eyes on the kid's full lips. "I can't touch you," he said at last. "Not without him here."

Scorpius's face shifted at that, but not towards anger or frustration. It was like he _understood_ , dammit. Teddy took a shuddering breath. Scorpius nodded, pulling back a little bit but not as much as he might have. His face and neck remained well within Teddy's range. "All right," murmured Scorpius. He lifted his own hand away from his spent cock, drawing Teddy's attention down. "No touching, Lupin. Think you can manage that?"

The familiar edge to his voice made Teddy laugh, low and tinged with arousal. He watched, stroking himself slowly, as Scorpius brought his stained hand up to his mouth and slipped first one fingertip, then another, between his lips. He sucked gently, the tip of his tongue lapping lightly at his sticky fingers. Teddy's hand sped up, his cock rigid and his body coiling tight. Then, Scorpius leaned forward as if to touch his mouth to Teddy's cock, but he stopped himself just short. He glanced up at Teddy, his eyes alight.

Fucking Slytherin bastard.

"You're not going to make this easy, are you?"

Scorpius grinned. "No touching," he reminded him. And then he let his tongue peek out to dab at his lower lip, as if in anticipation.

Teddy was lost.

His thighs tensed and his stomach muscles clenched as warm come shot through his fist. He groaned and aimed as best he could, nearly falling into the counter at the look on Scorpius's face as he closed his eyes and let Teddy's come coat his cheek and lips. Ropes of white stained that flushed, seventeen-year-old face, and Teddy couldn't catch his breath as he watched it slide down. He put his free hand on the wall beside him to steady himself, still milking his cock with the other one.

Slowly, Scorpius opened his eyes.

Teddy stumbled backwards as he tried to bodily prevent himself from leaning in and licking the stains from Scorpius's gorgeous face. Jesus fucking Christ. He was still breathing hard, his hand wet and his nerves completely shot. _No touching_. He could have howled with frustration. He shoved his dick back in his pants, zipping up quickly and closing his robes. He tried to figure out what an actual adult in this situation would do, deciding finally to take his wand out and spell the kid's face clean, at the very least.

"So," he said at last, trying not to either cringe outwardly at the fiasco he just created or lunge towards the kid and kiss him breathless. "That would be lesson number two."

Scorpius blinked at him. "Lesson in…?"

Teddy gave him a pointed look. " _Sex_ , Malfoy. That's what you wanted from me and James in the first place, wasn't it?"

"Oh." The little brat wiped his hand on a nearby towel and zipped his trousers. "For a second there I thought you were going to say, _How to cheat on your boyfriend_." He gave Teddy an innocent smile, but his narrowed eyes were fierce.

"You little shit," spat Teddy before he could stop himself. "You've no idea what you're talking about, as usual."

"Here I thought you and Potter had some sort of arrangement about these things. But an innocent man wouldn't have to be so defensive, would he?"

Teddy forced his heart rate to slow. This was ridiculous. "I'll tell him when I get home," he ground out, his jaw tight.

The wind seemed to seep from Scorpius's sails. He shrugged, turning to the door. "Yes, of course," he muttered. "Getting lessons from the pinnacle of morality here, I see," he added under his breath. "Lucky me." He clicked the door to the loo open almost silently, opening it with care and peering out. The coast must have been clear, because he strode from the room without looking back. Sighing, Teddy paused to splash a bit of water on his face before following.

He headed out to the hallway, still scrubbing one hand over his forehead, and nearly ran smack into Scorpius five paces down.

"Malfoy, come on," he said with a sigh. "I'm sorry, all right? Let's just go back out there and get a beer. You can–"

But Scorpius wasn't listening to him. His already pale face was a ghostly shade of grey, and he was staring at the opposite wall. Teddy's voice trailed off as he followed Scorpius's gaze.

>   
> _SCORPIUS MALFOY IS A SHAMELESS PILLOW-BITER_   
> 

Teddy closed his eyes for a second in an extended blink. When he opened them again, the words were still there. The block letters hovered just off the wall, glowing a faint blue as though carved in ice. Teddy's mouth fell open.

"What did you do?" whispered Scorpius.

"Me? I didn't do that."

But Scorpius was almost in a trance and barely listening to him. "My father," he whispered, so faint Teddy could barely hear him, "is going to see this. I can't tell him. Oh God. Not yet. Not– I am _not_ a– a–" His reaction turned from stunned silence to fear to anger and then denial in five seconds flat. He whirled his head to the side to face Teddy. "I'm _not_."

"Okay, look, we'll sort this out, but your first point of attack should not be to run back into the closet and deny, oh I don't know, some very detailed experiences you've had lately that prove that yes, Malfoy, you _are_."

"Shut up, Lupin. Just shut up." His hands were shaking.

"Malfoy, come on." Teddy sighed. "It's hardly the end of the world. A bit embarrassing, sure, but hell, James had that very thing sprayed on his Quidditch locker in permanent ink for three years at school. Bill saw it written on the front of his office every day after I started working there." He threw his hands up. "It's stupid, but there must be somebody here who knows, and it gave their tiny brain a bit of a laugh to write this. Let me do some spells on it and we'll sort it out."

But Scorpius was shaking his head. "No one knows," he said carefully. " _No one_. Just you and Potter. There is no actual way anyone else knows. How did...?" He rose a shaky finger, pointing.

From the ballroom, they could hear laughter and conversation trickling down the hallway, and Scorpius paled even further.

Teddy silently cursed Bill for dragging him here in the first place. He pulled his wand out again and approached the wall, tapping at the letters and performing a few basic diagnostic spells. Nothing gave. It wasn't written with magical writing instruments, and it didn't seem to be a picture held up by a permanent sticking charm. He frowned. According to his wand, there wasn't anything on the wall at all. "Bugger," he muttered. He could call Bill over, but he was willing to venture a guess that Scorpius would sooner throw himself out the window than let that happen.

" _Well_?" Scorpius flapped his arms.

"Shh. I'm thinking."

"God, think _faster_ , you useless beast. I am _not_ going to let my father see that."

"Let your father see what?"

Both Scorpius and Teddy froze. Teddy cringed but turned to face the newcomer a bit quicker than Scorpius. "Hey!" he said brightly. "Great party!" He moved around to Draco's other side, forcing him to turn away from the wall if he was going to continue talking to Teddy.

Alas, Draco did not want to seem to continue talking to Teddy.

"I can explain!" Scorpius began to babble as Draco stood in plain view of the wall. Scorpius lodged one palm over his forehead. "It's– it's cursed, someone's playing a trick, and Lupin here was just trying to help. We'll get it off, I swear. Father, I'm sorry, I'll fix it, and it's not _true_ , and–"

Behind Draco, Teddy made a slicing movement across his throat, cringing at Scorpius's rant. Scorpius spotted him and trailed off, swallowing.

Draco turned to Teddy, outwardly calm but with a vein pulsing visibly at his temple. "You seem to have already forgotten our little chat, Lupin," he said coldly, lowering his voice.

"Oh, come on," said Teddy irritably. "Does it look like we're naked? He's just showing me around."

Draco ignored the plea of innocence. "I sincerely hope you have enjoyed your life so far," he bit out, "because when I'm through with you, you'll not be able to–" He stopped abruptly, blinking at the wall behind Teddy.

Fearful of what he might find, Teddy turned slowly.

>   
> _DRACO MALFOY HAS SUCKED WEREWOLF COCK_   
> 

Dear God.

Gathering himself much more quickly than Teddy could, Draco strode forward, stopping only inches from Scorpius's face, and began talking very quietly. Teddy caught only snippets of it, but when he realised what Draco was doing, he had to admit it was a better strategy than Teddy's first thought, which had been to fling himself across the wall and hope that didn't draw even more attention to it.

"Go to your room right this second, and I want your eyes on the floor," Draco was saying. "If you so much as glance at that werewolf on your way past, I will–"

"I'm not _actually_ a werewolf," Teddy muttered, and bloody hell, speaking of drawing _attention_ to it.

"Father, please," whispered Scorpius, refusing to heed any of the instructions, least of all keeping his eyes on the ground.

Frantic, Teddy gave in and plastered himself across the wall anyway. Both messages presently hanging grandly off the two walls were bad, but it wasn't hard to choose which one Teddy would rather hide. Christ.

"It's not what you think! It's not true, I swear it's not. I'd never be a– well, I mean, not that there's anything wrong with it. I'm very glad you told me, you know. So, so glad." Scorpius pressed his lips together. "But it's not me, it's not..."

That was when it hit Teddy. Cautiously, he stepped forward, dropping his arms and glancing back over his shoulder at Draco's message with a wince. He forged ahead on his intuition alone and prayed he was right.

"Scorpius!" Draco pinched the bridge of his nose. "I don't know what you're on about now, but for the love of Merlin, _go to your room and keep your eyes on the floor_!" Teddy had never actually heard Draco shout – outside the bedroom, of course – and he wasn't sure he liked the sound.

"Malfoy," he bit out, and then sighed in exasperation when they both turned to him. "Draco," he amended, throwing what he hoped was a _trust me_ look in Scorpius's direction. Steeling himself, he nudged Scorpius out of the way, where he had hardly been blocking anything anyway, and pointed at the wall.

Draco looked for a moment, and then turned to glare at Teddy as if he were an asylum inmate. "What?" he snapped.

" _Look_ ," insisted Teddy. Behind him, he saw movement but then none, as if Scorpius had flattened himself against the other wall in terror and locked his limbs in place.

His eyes drifted past Scorpius's secret without so much as a facial tic. "Get him _out_ of here," he said through clenched teeth.

" _Draco_." Teddy stood firm, grasping Draco's arm. "Is that wall blank?" He pointed definitively to the wall still blaring Scorpius's sexuality for all the world to see – or so they'd thought. He glanced over his shoulder at Scorpius, whose eyes were the size of saucers.

"Of course it's blank, you bloody idiot. Now _please_ –" his voice dropped to a panicked whisper – "will you help me get my son out of this fucking hallway before he sees? And then you can do your damn job and tell me why my walls have gone completely mad."

"I _am_ helping," he said softly, squeezing Draco's arm in what he hoped was a supportive gesture. "All right? Trust me?"

Draco's eyes widened, and he looked ready to scoff.

Teddy leaned in close to his ear. "I have only ever told one person," he said in a low voice, "and he lives abroad and has no interest in your secrets, I swear. I would never tell your son. I promise you. Not like this. Trust me?" He moved back, watching Draco's face.

After a moment, Draco gave a stiff nod.

"Thank you. Now, turn this way."

When they turned, Teddy saw Scorpius breathe again, his face still pale but the trauma he was awaiting not having come. Teddy grasped his shoulder and turned him, too, ignoring Draco's hiss beside him.

"Scorpius," he said, "is that wall blank?"

Scorpius gave him a confused look, glancing back at his own message, but then he squinted at the wall advertising Draco's sexual proclivities. _Past_ sexual proclivities, at least. "Uh, _yeah_. Obviously. That's not really the wall I'm worried about, Lupin," he added in a whisper.

Teddy's shoulders slumped in momentary relief. "All right. Now will both of you calm down?"

Draco and Scorpius eyed each other, and Teddy, warily.

"What does your wall say?" Draco said to Scorpius after a pause, his eyes narrowed.

"Nothing!" Scorpius clamped his mouth shut, frowning at the shrillness. "I mean, nothing, really," he repeated, his voice back to normal. He mirrored his father's look, and Teddy almost laughed at the likeness. "Why?" he asked accusingly. "What does _yours_ say?"

Before Draco could misdirect again, Bill appeared at the end of the corridor.

"There you are. Come on, Lupin. I'm done here. Let's go." He jerked a thumb over his shoulder, hardly waiting for an answer.

"Wait." Teddy jogged up the hall after him. "Come look at this."

Bill raised an eyebrow. "You, flirting with Malfoys? Seen it." He turned again to go, but Teddy grasped his arm.

"Come on, just come here and look at– wait, what?"

Bill smirked, chewing on a cocktail toothpick.

"Arsehole," muttered Teddy. He lowered his voice. "You've been trying to book a Malfoy case for decades, right? Well, I've got one for you."

That got his attention. Teddy started back down the hall, but he stopped when Bill called out again.

"Is this my case, then?" Bill had paused in front of another stretch of wall a few metres up from where Draco and Scorpius still stood, watching.

Teddy glanced back over his shoulder, then stopped and backtracked. "What?"

Bill pointed.

>   
> _BILL WEASLEY IS AN EXTRAORDINARY CURSE BREAKER_   
> 

Teddy frowned. Well, that was hardly the pervy secret Teddy would have expected from wall-writing sex magic. He called down to Draco and Scorpius.

"Hey. Come tell us if you can see this."

Both confirmed that this stretch of wall was also blank, and Teddy turned to Bill, grinning. "This is brilliant. Just wait. Go down there and see if you can see theirs."

Both Draco and Scorpius began to protest, but Bill brushed them aside, striding down the hall.

"Nothing," he called back.

Teddy's mind raced with the thrill of a new case.

"But you can see them?" asked Bill, walking back up the hall towards them.

"Yeah," said Teddy. He couldn't keep the excitement out of his voice. "So either it's a bonding case with curse-legibility of some kind, or a–" He stopped, his mouth gaping.

Oh holy Jesus.

"Or a magical amanuensis of some kind without the human element, yeah, just the scribe." Bill was rubbing his jaw, deep in thought. "What do you think the trigger is?" He paused. "Ted?"

Teddy barely heard him. Okay. He tried to stay calm. Judging by what they'd just learned, messages on the walls were only visible to the person affected by them. Right? So, there was no way any of them could see what he was presently seeing. No bloody way. Thank Christ. Except, maybe Scorpius could see it? Shit. Well, if anyone, he would be better than Bill or– oh God, definitely better than Draco. Infinitely. Teddy would be lucky to escape with his life if Draco saw. He couldn't take the chance, had to get them out of there, had to –

"Hey." Bill's sharp voice cut through his thoughts. "What are you looking at now?"

Teddy shook his head frantically. "Nothing. Let's– yeah. Scribe curse. Sounds like a good place to start." His voice was shaking, though. Dammit. Bill turned around, scanning the wall.

Teddy hadn't just been looking at words. It was pictures, like a Muggle film, moving images on the wall that showed him and Scorpius, _shit_ –

And there was... there was... _sound_.

"God, yes," wall-Scorpius was groaning, spread out on what looked like Teddy's bed, lifting himself onto his elbows and pushing back against Teddy's cock. He craned his neck around. "Now, I hate to complain, but when is Potter going to join us?"

Wall-Teddy paused, wiping the sweat from his eyes and glaring down at the pale back underneath him. "Not going to," he grit out. "Just you, Scorpius. You and that tight little arse I couldn't have last time." He pushed forward again, dragging his fingers over Scorpius's arse and around to grip his hips at the sides.

"Not going to?"

"He's not _here_. Christ. You want to do this or not?"

Scorpius wrenched around again to glare over his shoulder. " _Yes_ , obviously," he pouted, "but also _yes_ , he's here, or that's someone else's nancy scarf at the door." He turned back to the mattress and dropped down, moaning. "He never did look good in red."

Standing stock-still in the hallway, Teddy tried to remain calm. He darted a glance at the others. They were staring at him, but he couldn't tell if that was because they'd heard and seen everything, or if it was because he was acting like a madman.

"Ah," said Draco at last, folding his arms over his chest and narrowing his eyes. "Wouldn't want you to be the odd man out, Lupin. So, what does _yours_ say?"

Teddy held back a whimper. "It... nothing," he managed. "I thought I saw something, but... no. It's clear."

"You're lying," said Scorpius, pointing a finger. "I can tell!" He followed Teddy's eyes, scanning the wall, and it was all Teddy could do to hold it together. Scorpius was staring right at it, right at the image of himself spread out on all fours, taking Teddy's cock in like a moaning whore, but apparently he couldn't see it.

On the wall, the image of Teddy spun around at Scorpius's mention of James, just in time to see a whisper of dark hair and the tips of two fingers curled around the door frame from the kitchen.

 _You're lying_. The words echoed in Teddy's head. "I'm not," he spat at Scorpius. "I don't fucking lie. Not for you, not for anyone, so if you think you can–"

" _Lupin_." Bill cut him off again, glaring daggers. "Go wait outside. If Malfoy indeed has a case here he'd like to pursue, I'll get the details."

"I believe I do," Draco added, watching Teddy carefully, "but if you can't keep your employees in check, Weasley, then perhaps I'll take my business elsewhere."

"He's in check," muttered Bill, pointing down the hall, "but if you have a problem with my employees, then we don't need your business anyway."

They both puffed their chests out a bit, and on either side of them, Scorpius and Teddy glanced at each other, Scorpius looking confused but a bit excited by the prospect of a fistfight, Teddy debating which he wanted to do more: give Bill a hug, shag Scorpius stupid or hex Draco into a miniature and throw him off the balcony. Christ.

"Your employees," said Draco slowly, "will speak to my son with respect when in this house." He turned to Teddy. "And will not pursue anything _more_ than respect."

The goddamn sound was still playing on the wall, Scorpius moaning and gasping and begging for Teddy to fuck him harder. They couldn't hear it. He was almost one hundred per cent sure of that.

"You like that, Malfoy, taking my werewolf dick all the way in like that?"

Okay, eighty per cent sure.

He blinked between the others, opened his mouth to defend himself, and then thought better of it. His mind whirling, he turned and set off down the hall. This was bad.

This was _very_ bad.

***

The thing about lying, Teddy knew, was that it was virtually impossible to get away with it. The thing about lying about sex, moreover, was that it was _absolutely_ impossible to get away with it. He'd learned that lesson the hard way, after rummaging a bit too deep in boxes of his father's old things that Harry had inherited. He'd been fifteen and not quite confused, per se, but certainly more than a little curious as to why anything with its top off – man, woman, centaur, etc – could cause him to spring an erection stiff enough to do battle with a medieval sword.

He resolutely did not wank, however, to the stack of letters he found in one of those boxes, despite the fact that some of them were hot enough to start a small fire. If they'd belonged to anyone else, he would have added them to his personal porn collection. Discovering that one's dead father was – and this was a tremendously generous reading of things, he thought – bisexual was at once liberating and more than a little unnerving. Teddy spent the following year embracing the freedom that came with the knowledge that he was perfectly normal, that maybe it was just in his genes, while also shoving down all those pesky questions about the validity of his parents' relationship.

"Hi."

Teddy sighed with relief as he rounded the corner to his flat after the disastrous party and found James sitting on the front steps, his knees pulled up to his chest. "Hi," said Teddy, plunking down beside him and immediately putting an arm around his shoulders and drawing him close.

James relaxed against him, snuggling into Teddy's shoulder and sliding one hand over his thigh. "Sorry," he said quietly. "It was just that–"

"I know." Teddy kissed the top of his head, his fingers light at the back of James's neck. "I am, too."

James seemed to release a great burden with his next exhalation, and Teddy pulled him even closer.

"Missed you," murmured Teddy, and he felt James smile against his shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"Of course." He nudged James's chin up, capturing his lips in a soft, gentle kiss. Warmth spread through him, and he sighed into James's mouth as the kiss deepened. It would be okay now. They could put this business with Scorpius to rest and just carry on as they'd been doing before. "Come upstairs with me?" he murmured against James's lips. "Want to make it up to you."

"Mmm, make-up sex," groaned James, already rising to his feet and pulling Teddy up with him.

"What, your favourite? We hardly ever have it." Teddy grinned, ushering them through the doors to the Muggle building.

James leaned in to kiss him again in the lift, not letting his hands leave Teddy even as they stumbled down the hallway to the flat together. He ran his hands down Teddy's arms, hesitating over his wrists before circling them with possessive fingers. His thumbs smoothed over the sensitive underside of Teddy's wrists, and James's face momentarily darkened. "That's because we just don't fight nearly enough," he said quietly.

Teddy laughed softly, hoping to lighten the moment. "Good. Fighting's overrated."

They got inside and James immediately crowded Teddy up against the closed front door. His fingers made quick work of Teddy's robes and the clothing underneath. When he got to his trousers and pants, James slid to the floor, his mouth trailing down Teddy's abdomen.

Teddy had a brief moment of panic. What if he still had come on his pants? What if he couldn't get hard again fast enough? An image of Scorpius sliced into his mind, and he swallowed down a gasp as James took him in his mouth.

Okay. Getting hard again wasn't going to be a problem.

He threaded his fingers in James's hair and pulled him in closer, thrusting gently between his lips. "God," he breathed. "Did I mention that I missed you?"

James grinned, releasing Teddy's cock and wetting his lips. He stood up again and headed straight for the bed, crawling onto it with purpose and glancing back at Teddy.

He was across the room in seconds, grasping James's head between his hands and kissing him breathless. "Just you," he murmured against James's mouth. "Okay? From now on, no more fucking with– Just, no more."

James pulled back and looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean." He tackled James to the bed, straddling him and pinning his arms overhead. "No more fucking around. No more glory holes at the Cockerel. No more French lawyers at the club behind the Wizengamot." He bent his head and inhaled James's scent, his nose tickling up James's neck and his lips following with a slow brush of warmth. "I'm the only one who gets to fuck you."

James's face melted at that, his body arching under Teddy's touch and a low moan rising up from his chest.

Teddy caught James's mouth with his, wet and hot. "No more Room of Requirement," he breathed. "No more back alleys in Hogsmeade."

James moaned against his lips.

"No more fit little delivery boys at Hermione's office."

James bit down a laugh, shoving his hands in Teddy's hair instead and deepening the kiss. "Okay," he murmured, pulling back a bit to look into Teddy's eyes. "Just you."

A flash of heat raced up Teddy's spine. _No more facials in the loo_ , he promised himself, as James looked at him with such complete trust that Teddy almost had to look away.

"Now." James traced his fingers along Teddy's cheek in a tender caress before pushing Teddy back on his heels and cupping his cock through his jeans. "Can we get to the business at hand, please?"

Pushing James's shirt up and over his head and curling his fingers in the waist of James's jeans, Teddy tried to rid his mind of anything to do with Scorpius Malfoy. It was all James's fault in the first place, after all, for bringing that damn kid into Teddy's bed, searing him in his dreams forever. It wasn't Teddy's fault that every time he had James on his hands and knees lately, he wished that it was blond hair falling into that blissed out face instead of dark, or that a pretty Malfoy mouth was calling him a filthy werewolf, instead of James's teasing endearments, even as he shoved himself between those pale thighs.

 _No_.

Teddy took a deep breath and banished Scorpius from his thoughts, focusing on James and only James. He had everything he could ever want in one fit package underneath him right now. What the hell was wrong with him that he had to go fantasise about another?

He took his time with James that night, peeling their clothes off and letting his hands and mouth explore every bit of him. He made James slow down from his usual pace, not to rush through sex out of desperation to get off, but to take his time and enjoy it. James gave him an exasperated pout at first, but as Teddy kept repeating the words – " _Slow_ , baby, yeah, like that. Just a little slower" – James dissolved bit by bit into a right mess.

He climbed on top of Teddy at last, fingered open at Teddy's leisure, as if they'd had all the time in the world, and worked his thighs _slowly_ , sinking down inch by inch. It was intense with Teddy penetrating him like this, usually almost too much for James, so they rarely did it. When Teddy saw that this position was what James had in mind for them, he closed his eyes and held James's hips, coaxing him with gentle words. Before James, very few blokes had allowed Teddy to top them at all, once they'd got a look at his dick. James had only taken one glance at it that first night, trapped underneath Teddy's pants in a fat outline, before he'd dove on the bed and pulled his knees up to his chest.

Teddy smiled to himself at the memory.

Now, with James hovering over him, the look on James's face as he slid down was worth every extended second it took for him to do it. His brow creased in concentration, then his eyes would close in waves of bliss, then his mouth would pinch at the corners as the ache intensified. Then he'd pause, breathing deeply, with sweat dampening his forehead as he gazed down at Teddy.

"Too much?" he breathed.

James shook his head, a tiny smile curving the corners of his mouth.

Teddy wet his lips, his eyes moving back and forth from the exquisite expression on James's face, to the image of James's body stretching around Teddy's cock. He gazed down, watching another two inches disappear, but a low moan from James made Teddy flicker his eyes up again. James's face was flushed with exertion and his lips were parted.

He worked himself down the rest of the way and stilled, his balls heavy over Teddy's abdomen and his arse fluttering around the thickness of Teddy's prick.

"Christ," gasped Teddy, running his fingers up over James's stomach and chest. "You're so fucking gorgeous, you know that? Just, go slow."

James pulled his lower lip under his teeth as he gazed down at Teddy, his chest shining in the low light. "Okay," he murmured. Then he started to move, riding Teddy at an agonising pace, his thighs tensing on every lift up and his face etched in naked pleasure on each downward slide. Everything he was feeling lit up on his features, and it was Teddy's favourite thing in the world to have James laid bare like this, naked and honest and desperate and in love and willing to do anything, _anything_ , to get his body as close to Teddy's as he could.

Stretched up now with his hands falling behind him, gripping Teddy's thighs, James ground his hips in slow circles, his body damp where they were joined and Teddy almost at the end of what he could endure before coming. A slow smile overtaking his features, James gazed down at him and picked up the pace, riding Teddy harder. His hands came back around front to jerk himself, one tight around his prick and the other pressed into his balls, and Teddy lay back against the sheets and watched him, let him do it himself, let him have everything he wanted.

"Teddy," he choked out, his stomach clenching as he bent forward. Teddy pressed his fingers into James's thighs to steady him, watching in wonder as he fisted himself to release. With a sharp intake of breath, he stopped moving, his cock spurting over Teddy's stomach and his arse squeezing around Teddy's prick.

"Fucking gorgeous," muttered Teddy, barely waiting for James to come down before sitting up and flipping them over. James gave him a delighted if mischievous grin and complied, throwing his legs up over Teddy's shoulders and letting him drive in deep.

"Not so _slow_ now, I see," gasped James, gripping the sheets, but Teddy just growled at him, his hands prising at the backs of James's thighs as his cock battered him through the mattress.

"No one else," whispered Teddy, panting, squeezing his eyes shut against the colour of his own guilt splashing behind his eyes. "I'm the only one who gets to do this to you."

James moaned. "Yeah, God. Just you." He paused, slanting his gaze up at Teddy. "And I'm the only one you get to do this to," he whispered.

Teddy's hips stuttered as he felt the strands of regret hanging over him. He pushed them aside and focused only on James underneath him.

"Come on, fuck me."

Teddy slammed forward, spurting deep inside James's body as he collapsed to a shuddering heap over top of him. A low, desperate groan left his lips, and then James was bringing him down, kissing him and whispering shaky endearments against his mouth. They wrapped themselves up together as if to stave out the world, and Teddy fell asleep to the feel of James's fingers smoothing over his shoulder blade.

***

Teddy spent all weekend with Bill working on the case at Malfoy Manor. A very insistent owl had arrived from Draco the morning after the party, threatening Teddy within an inch of his life if he gave any hint to Bill about what Draco had seen on the wall. Bill was curious, of course, since Teddy _had_ revealed – in the interests of solving the case – that both Draco's and Scorpius's messages had been sexual in nature. Bill had then spent much of Saturday morning giving Teddy a somewhat lewd little smile as he poked his head out of his office every fifteen minutes with a new guess, but he mostly let Teddy honour his promise to Draco that he wouldn't tell.

"He wears women's lingerie."

Teddy shook his head, not looking up from his reference book. He heard Bill step away again with a quick _Dammit, could've sworn_ under his breath.

It didn't make any sense that Teddy should be able to see the messages – and his own private _video_ , he hadn't forgotten that part – but not everyone else. He hadn't got around to telling Bill yet that each of the sexual messages in question did in fact pertain to Teddy, but he also wouldn't have put it past Bill to already have figured that part out. After all, it was sort of glaring that Bill's message had been so benign. At least that gave Teddy something to go on, though.

"He's got some sort of giant donkey cock."

Teddy flipped the page. "Be careful. I might think you're interested."

Bill made a gruff protest and disappeared again.

Talking _walls_ , honestly. Teddy sighed. First that bloody Ouija board, and now this. Scorpius certainly didn't seem to have any problem attracting Dark magic, whether he meant to or not. Teddy had to believe the kid hadn't conjured those messages himself, but he couldn't be completely innocent, either, not with his recent history of fucking with Dark spells, so it would make sense to –

"He's got a house-elf sex club down in his dungeon."

"Agh. _No_." Teddy threw his quill down, glaring at Bill.

"All right, all right. Don't get your kit in a snit." Bill tossed the last pertinent reference book on the table. "Why so uptight about this one?"

Teddy pulled the book towards him and started thumbing through the table of contents. "Oh, I don't know," he said with a sigh. "Maybe because I'm not exactly thrilled to be privy to the Malfoy family's stupid sexual secrets?"

Bill leaned back against the wall to his office, folding his arms over his chest and giving Teddy an expectant look. Teddy glanced up warily, skimming through the pages even quicker.

"What?"

"You don't have to tell me why, I suppose," he began, his stony jaw indicating that this was a downright lie, "but it doesn't take a three-year apprenticeship and one of Europe's best curse breaking libraries to figure out that _you're_ the common link with all those messages."

"I was there when it started, so the magic latched onto me," said Teddy without missing a beat. "Nothing shocking there."

"And what were you doing there when it started?"

"Talking to Scorpius."

"Just talking?"

Teddy looked up from the book. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It's not supposed to mean anything. It's a question." There was a time and a place for Bill's usual brusque manner, Teddy thought to himself, but now he was really not keen on being on the receiving end of it. "Were. You. Just. Talking?"

" _Yes_ ," Teddy ground out. He slammed the book closed and pushed his chair back.

"All right, calm down." Bill waved him off. "Maybe the kid's got a thing for you, did some unintentional magic based on what his dick was thinking."

Teddy squeezed his eyes shut, not needing to be reminded of what Scorpius's dick might have been _thinking_ that night.

"I don't think it has the dodgy intent to be something like George's flypaper jinxes," Bill continued, scratching his jaw, "and it's not multiplying fast enough to be a scribbulus gone rogue."

"Right." Teddy tried to relax as his brain overtook the distracting agenda of his dick. Despite his personal stake in this case, he did still feel that familiar jolt that always came with a new assignment, a new puzzle to solve. "If it were a literary version of something that takes root, like an arbor vortex, we'd all be covered in moss by now."

Bill snorted.

"But if it..." He trailed off, clamping down on what he really thought: focusing on the letters themselves, or the wall for that matter, was missing the point entirely. It was the nature of the messages that mattered, Teddy was certain of it, which meant that it was some kind of sex magic gone awry. He knew Bill had already reached the same conclusion, but he figured they could both dance around that a bit longer if it would save Teddy an agonisingly embarrassing conversation.

"Yeah. Fuck. I don't know," said Bill, and Teddy shot him a grateful look. "Maybe Burrett finally managed some magic that couldn't be accomplished by a twelve-year-old."

Teddy started to laugh, but then his face fell and his eyes widened. He looked at Bill.

Bill met his gaze, a slow smile spreading over his face. "You think?"

Teddy shrugged. "Best lead we've got. He's got the motive, at least, and he was there that night. He's got it in for anyone trying to be openly gay," he swallowed around the word, ducking his head and then cursing himself for his weakness, "so, that fits Malfoy as well as me. I mean," he added hastily, "I don't know why it'd target Scorpius like that, too, but, uh..." He frowned.

"No, I've no idea either," drawled Bill, but he didn't push it. "I'll handle Burrett," he said, heading back to his desk, "you go talk to the kid. It started with him, so maybe he saw Burrett getting up to something."

"Yeah. Okay." He sighed, but Bill was right. Scorpius might have answers. At the very least, he was one inhabitant of Malfoy Manor who had some very recent experience with Dark spells. Teddy grabbed his bag and strode out of the office.

***

"Come on, Malfoy. Out with it. Your subconscious doesn't exactly have the best track record when it comes to magical objects."

Scorpius flipped him two fingers and shut the door in his face.

Christ, that knocker was heavier than a lead anchor. Teddy grasped it with his full fist, tugged, and let it fall with a definitive _clang_ back on its iron plate. "Malfoy!"

The door swung open again, but Scorpius was already trotting back through the foyer, flapping his hands in the air as though Teddy were a fire that needed putting out. "Fine! Come in, make yourself at home. What do I care?"

"I'm trying to help."

Scorpius paused under an archway, his back to Teddy, with his hands on his hips and his entire body aligned in an elegant pout. "You're failing miserably."

Teddy approached him cautiously, stopping a few feet behind. "Then help me out."

His blond hair was long enough to curl around his ears, Teddy noticed as Scorpius turned his head to the side, sighing. He slipped one hand into his pocket and fiddled with something but then removed it again, clenching his fingers into a fist. "I didn't do anything," he muttered at last, glancing fully over his shoulder at Teddy. "So you're not allowed to come in if you're only going to slander me."

"Fine." Teddy rolled his eyes. "I won't slander you."

Scorpius mashed his lips together and nodded. "I've been all but living in this corridor, I should tell you, and I haven't seen it do anything else. Well, Father and I are vying for prime space, that is. He's no more keen to leave me alone here to see his randy messages than I am to leave him."

"But there haven't been any more?"

Scorpius shook his head.

"This way, right?" Teddy was already passing Scorpius and striding through the arch, trying to remember how they'd reached the offending corridor before.

"Yes, and don't _touch_ anything, God." Scorpius scurried behind him.

Teddy paced the length of the ornate corridor, redoing the basic diagnostic spells he'd done at the party. Still nothing. There was some sort of aura about this space, though, he could sense that much. He couldn't pinpoint it, but he'd be willing to bet some kind of old magic lived here; maybe Bill would know more about it. The walls here had a menace to them that Teddy hadn't encountered in the other spaces of the Manor. It wouldn't be that strange, either, to discover the remnants of old curses in a house this antiquated.

"Oh, for God's sake."

Teddy glanced down the hall to see Scorpius several paces away, his face buried in one palm. He moved up the hall and watched the letters begin to form again, just as he'd seen them the other night. Except this time, they had a slightly different message.

>   
> _SCORPIUS MALFOY CRAVES ANAL PENETRATION_   
> 

"Please, take your time, Lupin," muttered Scorpius. "You've not stared quite long enough. Do you need help reading words that long?"

Teddy ignored him, squinting at the message. "It _is_ remarkably articulate."

"It's absolutely crude."

"It's less offensive than last time," said Teddy. "Sort of. That's something, right?"

Scorpius glared. "Oh yes. It's so much better." His voice started to rise, and Teddy sensed the beginnings of a classic Malfoy tantrum in the works. "Where's the Floo powder? Let's call my father home right now to make sure he can have a good look."

"All right, come on. It's still not that big of a–"

"Fix it!" screeched Scorpius, his head in his hands. "Are you a bloody curse breaker or not? _Fix it_."

"And what if I didn't?"

That stopped Scorpius before he could really get started.

Teddy stepped forward, slowly so as not to set him off again. Gingerly, he clasped his hands to Scorpius's wrists and dragged his hands away from his face. Beneath the mask, Teddy had a fleeting image of a truly frightened boy before Scorpius squared his chin again and glared. "Please," he bit out, his gaze falling to Teddy's hands on his wrists. "Fix it."

"And," repeated Teddy softly, "what if I didn't? What if I couldn't?" He wet his lips, trying – and failing – not to think about the words on the wall in ways that would only trigger the usual reactions his body had to ideas about Scorpius and sex.

"You have to," whispered Scorpius, and there it was, that vulnerability splashed across his face again. "My father–"

"–as we all now know, enjoys a bit of anal penetration himself, presumably." Scorpius made to look away but Teddy shifted one hand from Scorpius's wrist to his cheek, cupping it firmly with his palm and forcing his gaze. "No, look at me. What are you so scared of?"

Scorpius clenched his jaw.

"What? Tell me." Teddy softened his voice. "Tell me why you can't stop thinking that what you want is wrong."

Scorpius's eyes widened again as he blinked at the wall. "I don't want–" he gestured – " _that_."

" _Scorpius_." Teddy brought both hands up now, framing Scorpius's face. His thumbs brushed gently along his cheekbones. "I was there the night you felt that for the first time, remember?"

Scorpius's eyes fell closed and a hot flush crept up his neck.

"That first time you were penetrated–" he leaned in and whispered the word across Scorpius's ear just to hear him moan – "with James so turned on by you, so eager to push inside you. It felt brilliant, didn't it?"

"No." But Scorpius opened his eyes a little bit, looking at the floor, and a tiny smile curled the edges of his pretty mouth.

"I watched you come like a freight train that night," murmured Teddy with a grin, watching Scorpius's features melt, "so don't lie to me. And one of these days, I swear to God, I'm going to push you down right in this hallway and fuck you so hard you won't walk right for a week."

With a groan, Scorpius fell against Teddy's chest, clutching at his robes and burying his face in Teddy's neck. Teddy brought him in close, his arms circling the kid with one fist tight at his back and the other lodged around the back of his neck, where Teddy was still whispering against his ear.

"So don't _tell_ me you don't want it. Don't tell me you believe all that rubbish at Hogwarts, in the papers, wherever, about it being wrong. You're stronger than that. I know you are."

The voice was so small Teddy almost missed it. "No, I'm not."

"Yes," he murmured, finally letting his lips brush over Scorpius's temple, just briefly. "You are. Your father's taught you better than this."

Scorpius groaned again, this time in exasperation, his forehead hot against the inside of Teddy's collar. "Right. He's always been so proud of who he is."

"He's done hiding," said Teddy, and God, he was going to ravage the kid right here if he didn't get some control of himself. Gently, he pushed Scorpius away and took a step back, his fingers lingering as they slid off his shoulder. Backing himself against the wall, Teddy crossed his arms over his chest to keep from reaching out to him again. "Every bit of shit you've seen James get at Hogwarts – and who knows, maybe you'll get too when you go back, if you're even a fraction as open as he was – well, your father gets it threefold out in the world, all right?"

"Yes, but he's got Harry Potter to protect him," said Scorpius pointedly, mimicking Teddy's pose against the opposite wall.

"Well, you've got me," said Teddy. "And James. And a good handful of other loyal blokes I can think of off the top of my head who'd help you in a heartbeat if you needed it. And that might not be the same thing, but it's a hell of a lot better than feeling like you're all alone, isn't it?"

He was doing it again, that hand in his pocket checking on something, flipping it around in his palm. He said nothing but seemed to withdraw once more, his face guarded and his eyes on the floor.

Teddy sighed. "All right, that's all the pep talk I've got in me today."

That earned him a tiny smile.

"I only came by to ask if you'd seen Maurice Burrett anywhere near here the night of the party."

Scorpius stopped jiggling the thing in his pocket. "Mr Burrett?" His face shifted. "Yes, I did see him." Jaw clenched, he nodded vigorously at Teddy. "Is it him? Can we send him and his stupid son to Azkaban for it? Oh, man, I would love to see that entire bloody family with their souls sucked out through their anuses." His hands clenched into fists.

"Uh, yeah, me too. So, you saw him?"

"Yeah, he was following me around for awhile, telling me my father's a faggot." Scorpius sighed. "Like that would be news or something."

"Did you see him anywhere near here?"

"I think so." Scorpius scrunched his nose up in thought, gesturing down the corridor. "More towards the dining hall, I guess, but closer to the..."

"Come on, spread your legs wider. You can take it, Malfoy. Take all of it."

The sound began to blare, drowning out Scorpius's benign directions through the manor, and Teddy almost jumped out of his skin. Behind Scorpius, the scene stuttered to life on the wall again, just as it had the other night, the image foggy but still far too easily discernible and the bloody _sound_ still cranked up.

A gasp, and then, "Yes, I'm taking it, _God._ " On the wall, that same petulant Scorpius was flushed and moaning, still glaring over his shoulder at Teddy.

"Were you just going to open him up for me?" That was a new voice, that was bloody _James_ , and both in the hallway and on the wall, the two Teddys cringed in horror. Oh no. Oh, Christ. He was balls deep in Scorpius, and it was so real he could swear he could feel the tingle throughout his body as he watched, and they were naked and fucking deep and hard on Teddy's bed, and there was _James_ , and he hadn't been in on it, he'd been deliberately left out? God, Teddy wanted to throw things at his wall self for his stupidity, but then, that wasn't right, because it wasn't just his wall self that had done that, getting off with Scorpius and deliberately leaving James out, that part _had_ been real, and _fuck_ , what kind of curse _was_ this? How did it know about that, know exactly what Teddy's biggest secret was, know every fantasy he had and every fear, when he –

"Lupin!"

He jerked his gaze away as Scorpius snapped his fingers in front of his face, alarm mixed with humour over his features. "What the hell are you doing? Your message is back too, isn't it?" he continued, not waiting for an answer. "It's not fair I can't see it, you know, when you can see mine. What sort of bloody curse does _that_? You're a bollocks curse breaker, if you can't even–"

" _Shut_ it." Teddy closed his eyes, rubbing them with his thumb and forefinger. After a moment, he took a deep breath and opened them again. The dialogue had stopped, but on the wall, sounds of Teddy rogering Scorpius something fierce continued to play at high volume. "I assume you can't hear that?" he asked carefully.

Scorpius looked at him. "Hear?" When Teddy nodded, Scorpius gave a low whistle. "Yours has _sound_?" He cackled. "All right. I'll stop feeling sorry for myself, then. Although _please_ do whatever you can to ensure that my father's messages never get that feature." He shuddered. "It's bad enough knowing he's got some message about Harry Potter's balls floating around that I can't see. I'd rather not hear the audio, thanks."

"Uh, yeah, I'll do my best."

Scorpius stepped towards him, a curious look on his face. "What's it sound like, then?" he asked softly, his breathing speeding up. "Is it something about you and Potter?"

"Um. Sort of."

He took another step. "Tell me."

Noooo. Teddy felt his face heat. He shook his head, averting Scorpius's gaze.

"Come on." One more step, and then they were back to being far too close.

"No." Teddy held up one hand as if he could ward Scorpius off that way.

But now their faces were only inches apart, and Scorpius was reaching up to sweep a strand of hair behind Teddy's ear – purple-red today, he knew, and from the way Scorpius was watching the path of his fingers as they smoothed over it, it was a look that appealed to him. With Scorpius's lips parted like that, Teddy could almost pretend the moans and gasps from the wall were coming out of the mouth in front of him, all from just _looking_ at Teddy.

"It's not about me and James," he admitted at last.

Scorpius's hand stilled, his fingers warm over the side of Teddy's face.

"It's me and you."

If Teddy thought Scorpius would have dropped his gaze and blushed at that, stepping back and making awkward accusations or inappropriate small talk, he was dead wrong. Scorpius only held Teddy's eyes from beneath his shaggy blond fringe, his fingers slipping from the side of Teddy's face down to cup the back of his neck, and then he was leaning in, tentatively, his gaze flickering from Teddy's mouth back up to seek permission in his eyes, and Teddy's entire body ached to crash into him and capture Scorpius's lips as fiercely as he could.

" _Lupin_ ," the voice on the wall groaned. "Forget about him. Just _fuck me_."

Squeezing his eyes shut to try to break the spell, Teddy reached up and grasped Scorpius's arm, gently pushing him back. He shook his head. "I have to go," he muttered, wiping his mouth and trying to figure out how to walk down that goddamn hall with one foot in front of the other like a normal person. "Owl me after ten minutes," he added as he thought of something. "Tell me if your message is still there."

Scorpius nodded, mashing his lips together and leaning back against the wall.

Jesus. Teddy strode out of the Manor as quickly as he could, wondering if it would be possible to keep his job if he told Bill he could never go back there.

***

"Hey, do you want to go by that new curry place? I thought we could–" Teddy emerged from the shower the next night, rubbing a towel through his hair, but he stopped dead when James clicked shut a small object in his hand. "What's that?"

"Nothing."

Teddy paused. "Er– okay. You do realise that now I'm even more curious, right?"

James sighed, sagging down on the sofa. "Yeah. Whoops."

"If you could do it over again, what would you say?"

James flashed him a grin. "Let's see." He sat up straighter, putting on a mocking voice. "This? Oh, just something Granddad gave me. Muggle flash-torch or something. Don't think it works, though."

Teddy nodded. "That would have been better."

"Dammit." But James was still smiling at him even as Teddy gave him an expectant look and held out his hand.

" _Accio_ James's secret hand thing."

James flipped him two fingers as the object sailed out of his hand.

Teddy caught it. "Your mirror?"

"Uh, yeah. Kind of."

"That's not something you need to hide from me." Teddy poked at it. He took his own out of his pocket to compare them. James's was suddenly half the size of Teddy's. "You split it in half?"

James looked down at his hands, and Teddy didn't need to ask any more questions. He sank down on the sofa next to James, exhaling slowly.

"I'm _sorry_ , all right? I thought he should have one. It's not– We were just talking. He doesn't have any friends around this summer, I don't know. He's all weird about his dad and he just–" James gave a helpless shrug. "He's sort of pathetic. I haven't shagged him, though. I swear I haven't. He just chats my ear off."

"About shagging?"

James glared at him for a second, but then his lips betrayed a tiny smile. "Sometimes. Maybe." He fought a grin, putting on his best imperious Malfoy voice. "How on earth do you decide who tops and bottoms? What's an anal bead? Why would anyone want lube that's cherry flavoured? How do you get that werewolf prick to actually _fit_ anywhere? Is it mandatory that I start wearing purple now?"

Teddy bit down over a laugh, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and forefinger as James trailed off. "So he's still looking for advice, just like before."

"Yeah." James fell silent, his eyes on the floor.

Well. This was unexpected. James was the one who had pitched the fit about Scorpius in the first place, who had been so jealous of Teddy making any mention of him, who had agreed so readily just the other night to being exclusive with Teddy. It should be Teddy's turn to be jealous now, to flounce off and tell James he could bloody well _have_ Scorpius if that was what he really wanted.

But Teddy couldn't do that. Had he ever been jealous, _truly_ jealous that Scorpius would steal James out from under him? Teddy searched deep down, trying to locate his feelings. He hadn't. Not really. He _should_ , perhaps: they were both young and eager and obviously loved exploring things together, sharing their experiences about how to be young and gay in a world like this. But whenever he thought of them together, Teddy could always see himself in the background, watching with approval or cautiously joining in when they begged him.

"Say something." James's voice was low and desperate, and Teddy realised he'd been silent for too long.

"Just trying to decide if I'm jealous," admitted Teddy, and James gave him a small smile.

"Oh. How's it going?"

"Not bad. I think I should be, but I'm not."

"Oh."

"Do you want me to be?"

"Uh. I don't know." James's brow furrowed, and he sank back against the sofa cushions. "I guess you could be, a little? I did promise there'd be no one else but you." James chanced a glance at him.

"Yeah, you did. So, why him? Why now?" God. Pot, kettle, black.

James shrugged. "I don't know." They were both quiet for a long moment. "Do you still think about him?"

Teddy looked at his hands, and James laughed softly.

"Yeah. Stupid question."

"It's not–"

"No, I know." James sighed. "Look at us, though. Thinking about him all the fucking time, and then getting all guilty about it. I can't explain it any more than you can, right?"

Teddy met his gaze.

"He's completely ridiculous, but fuck, he's just so hot, too, isn't he?" James ran his hands over his face and then up into his hair, grabbing fistfuls. "And I love you more than anything, but shagging Malfoy with you watching us like that, the way you came so hard when I got to be his first, it just, I can't stop thinking about it."

"You were brilliant," agreed Teddy quietly. "It was all I could do not to pin the pair of you down and fuck you both senseless."

James moaned, his head in his hands again. "He's right there!" he wailed. "He's of age, Teddy, and he adores us, I know he does, and he's willing and eager and remind me again why we _can't_? It wouldn't change things for us, I promise. I never want to replace you, but is it really so bad to want him, too? I just..." He sighed. "I don't know how this is supposed to work."

That was the thing, really. Teddy reached his arm out to pull James in close, kissing the top of his head. They were gay. Fine. That part caused enough ruckus. But they were in a stable relationship, and they were supposed to be proving to James's family, at least, that they were normal and responsible and that gay couples weren't really all that different from straight couples, and hey, look, they could grow an herb garden and play Quidditch on Saturdays like anyone else.

Except they couldn't have those things if they also insisted on keeping a mouthy blond boy in their bed half the time. That was immoral somehow, Teddy figured, or broke rules he hadn't known he'd made in the first place. That only proved everything the universe had always told him about gay men: they were partiers, promiscuous, untrustworthy, ruled by their cocks.

Sleeping with Scorpius again wouldn't just be about the pleasure of the moment, of giving in to a sexual experience both Teddy and James – and Scorpius himself – found erotic and enticing. It would be about keeping more secrets and telling more lies, because the world would never understand desires like this.

"Hey." James tilted his head up towards Teddy. "Are you pissed off?"

Teddy barked a laugh. "No. Christ. You might recall that I already have something of an overactive imagination when it comes to that kid. I'm just trying to figure out if there should be more of a moral conundrum here."

"There probably should be, yeah, but fuck it. The world's always tried to shove its moral conundrums on us, so why should we start caring now?"

Teddy leaned down to kiss James, his lips soft and warm. When he pulled back, he gave James a grave look. "Because Malfoy is barely seventeen, and he's only ever had sex with you. With us," he amended. "If we're just messing about with him, he could really get hurt. Think about it."

"Oh. Yeah." James pondered this. "So, are we just messing about with him?"

"You're not going to let this go, are you?"

James snuggled in closer. "No."

Teddy sighed, stroking James's hair. "I don't know. I honestly don't."

***

Teddy arrived back at Bill's office after a morning at the Ministry archives, weary and guilty and wondering what the hell he was going to do to get that stupid kid out of his head. The case at the Manor was going nowhere fast, and trying to solve it while trying to keep his hands out of Scorpius's pants all the time sure wasn't helping.

"No progress," he called out before Bill could ask. He peeled his cloak off and threw it on the sofa in the outer office before collapsing onto the thing himself, legs sprawled and head tilted back. He closed his eyes and tried to think of anything but Scorpius's hairless chest and full lips and– Fuck. "I've talked to Malfoy Junior, tried to see if he knew anything, but he's a dead end." He paused, squeezing his eyes shut further. At this rate, they'd never figure out what curse they were dealing with. "Fucking Malfoys," he muttered.

"And yet, I seem to recall a time when you were a little bit sweet on that family. One of them, at least."

Teddy's eyes flew open at the low, amused voice drifting from across the office. "Christ, Charlie. Warn a bloke, would you?"

"Now where's the fun in that?" Charlie dislodged his feet from where they had been perched on the windowsill and spun his office chair around to face Teddy. He was slouched down in the chair, legs spread wide, and grinning at Teddy like the cat who'd caught the goddamn canary. "So, what's this about Malfoys? Don't tell me you've gone and shagged Draco again."

" _No_ ," said Teddy with a bit more petulance to his voice than he would have liked. "I shagged Draco _once_ , as you very well know, and we were never to speak of it again."

"You brought it up."

" _You_ aren't supposed to be here."

That earned him another trademark Charlie grin. " _You_ must be batshit mad if you think I'd stay away from the biggest gay circus act this side of the Channel. Can't find a newspaper even in the haystacks of Romania that doesn't have Harry and Draco on the cover, pretending they're not actually in the same frame. Not to mention Potter _Junior_..."

Teddy narrowed his eyes. "You already knew about Potter Junior." He let the word slide off his tongue with the same mocking grace as Charlie, giving him a pointed look.

"Ah, but what did I know, exactly? Nothing of the tangled webs being woven." He leaned back further in his chair as he counted off on his fingers. "Let's see. You and James. Harry and Draco. _You_ and Draco. James and–"

"Who?" Teddy sat up. "James and who?"

Charlie wet his lips, still grinning. "Ah. Got you there. You worried?"

Teddy sat back against the sofa cushions, rubbing his temples. Of course he was worried, but not about _that_. It was the thought of Charlie – or anyone – finding out about their night with Scorpius that was the worry. And, of course, there was that tiny problem of them not being able to stop thinking or talking about Scorpius, so how was that for a healthy relationship for you? As soon as word got out to _anyone_ about it, Teddy was done for. Twenty-four years old and should fucking well know better; that's what they'd all say. Taking advantage of two teenagers for his own perverted desires. He could see the headlines now.

"Hey." Charlie leaned forward, his face shifting to concern. "You _are_ worried." His voice softened. "What's up?"

For a second, Teddy debated actually telling him. Charlie liked to rib them all, but Teddy knew he was trustworthy. He was the original gay Weasley, after all, coming out when he was eighteen and flipping a two-fingered salute to anyone who dared to openly judge him about it, members of his own family included. That had been decades ago. Teddy knew James looked up to Charlie something fierce, and Teddy had to admit that even he had found Charlie's presence in the family to be reassuring during the times in his youth he'd been less confident than he was now about not only his sexuality but his overall place in the Potter and Weasley families. He ran a hand through his hair. "It's complicated," he said at last.

"Ah." Charlie sat back again, his brow still creased. "Let's see, then. 'Complicated' for you–" he squinted at Teddy – "I'd narrow it down to three possibilities."

Teddy gave him an exasperated look, but waited.

"One: you've worked yourself up into some filthy crush on your boss." His eyes twinkled, and Teddy coughed.

"Gah. _No_."

"Hm." Charlie paused. "Quite the reaction. All right, not someone older, then. My next guess would've been Harry, but that's not it, either, is it?"

Teddy's eyebrows hit his hairline.

"Nope. Got it." Charlie rubbed his jaw. "Not a father-figure thing. I can see that. You need those blokes to be non-sexualised for you, like a real father." He nodded to himself, and Teddy forced a laugh.

"Thanks, Doctor Freud."

Charlie shrugged. "Draco doesn't quite add up, I guess, but let's say that was just you working out how much you wanted cock, and Draco working out how much _he_ wanted cock, and then the pair of you could move on with other blokes you're actually meant to be with."

Teddy rubbed his eyes, but Charlie was just warming up.

"So. Two–"

"You already guessed two! Bill and Harry."

"Harry wasn't a real guess."

"Agh." Teddy fell back against the sofa, pouting. "Fine."

" _Two_ ," repeated Charlie. "You've worked yourself up into some filthy crush on one of James's mates."

Teddy froze, then wet his lips slowly. "I– no. Don't be daft. And why do all your guesses have to do with some new filthy crush? Why not, like, Fleur's still planning my wedding, or I've lost interest in James, or–"

Charlie gave him an incredulous look, then laughed. "Lost interest? Not likely. I _have_ seen you two lately, you know."

Teddy couldn't hide the small smile that tugged at his lips. He glanced up shyly at Charlie.

"See? It's never about you two. That much I can tell. Much to my sister's disappointment," he added with a grimace.

Teddy snorted. "Yeah. I know."

"So. That one didn't get quite the fierce denial of the other."

Teddy made to speak but ended up spreading his hands, his mouth open and any potential explanation dying on his tongue. He pressed his lips together and sighed.

"Ah. So it's like that, is it? Hold on." Charlie leaned forward to grab a pack of fags out of his back pocket. He shook one out and lit it with a pass of his hand. "I need nicotine for this one."

After a few drags, Teddy held out his hand. "Me too." He met Charlie's sad smile as he took the fag. He took a deep drag and let the smoke wash through him, calming his nerves. When he passed it back, Charlie leaned back in the chair and spoke to the ceiling.

"So you and James are still on fire, that's obvious, and now there's this other bloke, too. Someone he knows. And you think it's even worse than wanting someone instead of James." He met Teddy's gaze. "You want someone else in addition to him."

Teddy stared at the floor.

"Does he know?"

Teddy nodded.

"You didn't ask who I meant."

He jerked his head up.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." Charlie took another drag. "See? I told you I was good at this. Lifetime of practice, and all that. So James knows, _and_ his mate knows. Hell, maybe they're even all right with it."

Teddy swallowed.

" _Yeah_? Fuck me, Lupin." He shook his head, laughing. "Count your blessings, then, and quit worrying over it."

"It's not that simple."

"Sure, it is. Don't tell me you're worried about what people will _think_." He shifted his voice to that of a scandalised society woman, then snorted a laugh. "They already think you're a faggot and a slag. Welcome to the club. Come on, we went through this years ago. Why so scared all of a sudden? Your lad isn't out, is that it?" He shrugged. "You did wonders to help James, so, fuck it, you'll help this one, too. Not as big a deal as everyone seems to think."

"It's still not that simple," repeated Teddy with a sigh.

Charlie narrowed his eyes. "How old is he?"

Teddy was silent.

Charlie stood up, his free hand clenching into a fist. Teddy's heart sped up. _Fuck_. "Lupin," he said in a low growl, "so help me, if you tell me this kid is fifteen, I will slice your balls off."

"Seventeen," croaked Teddy, having huddled himself into a small ball on the sofa. "Sixteen, the first time, but that was all James. I didn't touch him. And he was _almost_ seventeen. And he fucking begged us, Charlie. Knew exactly what he wanted."

"What, you just watched?"

Teddy nodded, trying to calm his breathing.

Charlie was silent for a long time before he finally dropped back down to the sofa and took a long drag. "Fuck. I'm old as shit. Haven't had one that young in years. Can't even remember what it's like to want to." He shook his head. He stubbed the cigarette out on the desk and leaned forward on his elbows. "All right. It's still not all that complicated. He's of age. _Now_ , at least." He gave Teddy another warning glare. "He wants it. You and James both want him." He shrugged. "Go fuck your brains out, then. Who cares?"

Teddy took a deep breath and a very big risk. "His father might," he said quietly.

Charlie's face dawned with comprehension, and he let out a low whistle. "Ah. Fuck. Should have seen that coming." He pounded his knee with one hand. "Out of practice, dammit. Should have seen that one."

Teddy scrubbed his face, then sat back against the sofa cushions with both hands lodged in his hair. Charlie regarded him for a long moment, then shook his head.

"No. I still don't buy it. That's not the real problem for you. You don't care who he is or who his father is, and now I have more than a few ideas. But I won't make you tell me. Look, Teddy." His voice softened. "I'm not saying it's easy. You might just have three oversexed egos to contend with here, two of them young and spry and ready to take on the fucking world. I'll be surprised if there aren't more than a few moments of soul-destroying jealousy on the horizon for you lot. But there's nothing inherently wrong with it, okay? I mean..." He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "I've been in relationships like that before, okay?" he said quietly, the usual edge stripped from his voice.

Teddy blinked at him, but Charlie was looking at his hands.

"Not with bloody teenagers, of course. That's a tin of Flobberworms that I don't even know what to do with. But in general, there are things you've got to do. You've got to have some rules, make sure everyone's on the same page. _Talk_ about how you all feel about it. It can be fucking brilliant if you've got the right people, though, if you're all committed to it. You know? Christ. I'm no good at talking about this shit."

"I. You. I mean. _Shit_ , Charlie. Is there anything you haven't done before?" Teddy pushed down his shock and grinned. "Could've at least let me beat you to this one."

Charlie grinned back. "Never." He was quiet for a moment, then glanced up at Teddy again. "You think it's real, this thing," he asked, "or just shagging? I mean, you can have a threesome more than once, with the same people, and that's all it is. Poly stuff... well, that's a whole different thing."

"Yeah." Teddy considered it. "This... I think it's a whole different thing." He sighed, relieved, in a way, that it was finally out in the open, but still scared witless about what it all might mean.

"Talk to your lads," said Charlie quietly. "See what they want. Especially this young pip of yours. He might just be trying to shove either you or James out of the way, depending on what he really wants."

 _No_ , Teddy didn't say. _He wants us both. And we both want him_.

"And Teddy?"

"Yeah?"

Charlie rose from the sofa, dusting ash from his jeans. "I know I said to embrace who you are and all, and don't be afraid to give the world a rude salute."

"But?"

He grinned. "But. You'll, ah, probably want to be pretty sure about this whole thing before you let James tell my sister."

Teddy dropped his face into his hands. "Yeah," he mumbled. "Don't worry. She's not exactly first on the list."

Charlie clapped him on the shoulder as he passed, laughing. "This new one – is he fit?"

Teddy glanced up. "God, yes." His eyes slid out of focus as he thought of Scorpius's body, and he had to take a steadying breath.

"You lucky fucking prick," muttered Charlie. "Enjoy your lads, then," he added as he reached for the doorknob. "And once you've got yourself sorted, come take a vacation down south and tell me _all_ about it. All right, I'm off to Chester's. That Romanian lube is pure shit. Tell Bill I'll be over for dinner at seven. A pot roast would be nice." He winked as he left, and Teddy sank back against the sofa, lost in thought.

***

Despite his resolve to try to solve the case from the distance of Bill's office, Teddy ended up at Malfoy Manor every day that week, sitting quietly with Scorpius in the hallway with books and quills, trying to figure out why the wall was telling (or showing, gah) them every lewd thought in Teddy's head.

"You stay over there," he'd instructed Scorpius with a pointed finger the first day he'd returned. "I'm not shagging you, or snogging you, or comforting you, or any of that, all right?"

Scorpius just rolled his eyes.

The first thing he did was figure out how to silence the volume on the scene involving him and Scorpius, although it continued to play awkwardly in the background, like a porno at the breakfast table. Meanwhile, Scorpius's messages kept to variations on the same theme: he loved cock, he loved penetration, he loved bending over for penetration by a cock, etc. Teddy might have begun to find it tiresome, if the images it evoked didn't keep him up at night.

As Teddy worked through his theories, though, one book after another from his shoulder bag landing in a pile on the floor as he fired spells that didn't work at the creaking old walls, he and Scorpius began to talk about things – things that didn't necessarily have to do with sex. Teddy figured it probably shocked Scorpius as much as it did him that they did indeed _have_ things other than sex to talk about, but he also found he liked it. He _liked_ talking to the damn kid.

Scorpius was funny, in his own way, and he'd certainly had a much different upbringing than either Teddy or James. It made him... interesting. No, more than that. It made him really bloody appealing. Sometimes Scorpius opened up about his mum, or the general character traits that made Hufflepuffs useless, or how he had more interest in Ancient Runes than he'd ever admit to his father or grandfather.

One afternoon, Scorpius turned toward the wall in nonchalance, running his fingers over it and pretending to be searching for something, and then he asked Teddy when he knew he was in love with James.

If it had been anyone else to ask – even general allies like Charlie or Harry – Teddy would have clammed up. That was private. When he _had_ been asked it before (if phrased a little bit differently: "Yes, dear, but how can you be sure this isn't just a phase?") it had come from people trying to cheapen it, to make them feel ashamed. With Scorpius, though, Teddy didn't hesitate. Later, he would have to ask himself why.

"Pass the mashed potatoes."

Scorpius blinked at him. "Ah. Of course. True love, that." He smirked, and Teddy gave him a soft elbow to the ribs.

"I'd heard through the trusty family grapevine that James had come out to his dad. He was… probably fifteen or so."

Scorpius grinned. "Family meeting. Yeah, I heard."

"He told you about that?"

Scorpius shrugged. "Just the basics."

Teddy regarded him. Huh. James was open about his entire life, Teddy knew that, but that moment, that conversation with Harry and the ensuing drama, especially with Ginny and Albus being less than supportive – that was very private to him. For some reason, Teddy felt comforted by the fact that James had shared it with Scorpius. "Right. Well, we talked about it afterwards. Quite a few times, really. I was, I don't know–" Teddy scratched his jaw, thinking back on his own similar conversations with Charlie as a teenager – "older and wiser, I guess, and he had a lot of questions."

"I bet he did." Scorpius grinned.

"Yeah, well, you can hardly judge."

Scorpius gave him an impatient look, which Teddy ignored.

"He got a bit insistent that I should be the one to show him how to be gay." He shook his head, thinking back. "So, I might add, in hindsight it's a bit ironic that he's the one _you_ came to."

"I didn't 'come to' him, I was just–"

"You want to hear this or not?"

Scorpius glared but fell silent.

Teddy smiled, falling into the memory. "He had a whole game plan: where we'd do it, how many times we'd stop for food and maybe some pumpkin juice to power up, what positions we'd be in, the whole nine yards."

"Oh, God, he didn't."

"Yep."

Scorpius scratched his chin. "Maybe I should have done it that way."

"You did it the Slytherin way, that's for sure. He did it the Gryffindor way. But then it didn't matter because it didn't _work_. He wasn't even sixteen; I wasn't going to sleep with him at that point. He was just a kid."

"You're back to that faux moral virtue thing again, Lupin."

"Shut it. Anyway, I told him not to rush into anything, to explore some things himself and not bend over for any pot-bellied barman in Hogsmeade just to get some experience, please and thanks, and to just–" Teddy shrugged – "get used to things. Go at his own pace."

"Potter's pace? I think he'd already shown you that. Full steam ahead."

Teddy grinned. "Yeah. I figured that out later on. I told him I'd always be his friend, his older brother if that was what he wanted, that he could talk to me about anything. But I said I wasn't going to sleep with him just because I was the only other gay bloke he knew, or the only other one he trusted or looked up to or whatever it was. I barely remember saying this, but he remembered it, turned out: I said something like, 'Come back when you've got yourself sorted, got some more meat on your bones, got an ability to hold an erection for longer than five seconds without coming all over yourself. You can accost me at Sunday dinner sometime and I'll shag you into the mashed potatoes.'"

Scorpius glanced sideways at him. "Let me guess: in hindsight, it wasn't your best pick-up line."

"Not really, no. But I thought it would put him off, at least. And it did. For almost two bloody years he never mentioned it. We sat around, he talked and talked, and he grew up an awful lot. He had to." He gave Scorpius a pointed look. "You know what Hogwarts is like, the things he faced."

Scorpius only nodded, picking at the hem of his t-shirt.

"Then one night at dinner, James says to me, 'Pass the mashed potatoes.'"

A slow grin overtook Scorpius's features. He glanced up. "You didn't _actually_ shag him over a pot of mashed potatoes."

Teddy couldn't hide a smile at the memory. "Not quite. Ginny hates them, in fact. Never serves them."

"Oh." Scorpius's eyes widened. " _Oh_. But he said it anyway?"

"While wearing a shirt that was far too tight, and giving me this look across the table that was just... I don't know."

"I know that one."

Teddy grinned. "You've seen it?"

Scorpius pulled his lower lip under his teeth, dropping his eyes.

"Oh yeah, you've seen it." Teddy sighed, leaning back against the wall. "Well, that was it. I was done for. I took him home with me that night and we've never looked back."

Scorpius gave a low whistle and then fell silent for a bit too long.

Teddy nudged him. "Stop thinking about it," he said with a laugh, unable to look away from the pink stains on Scorpius's cheeks. Acting on what impulse he didn't know, he pressed things further. "So when did _you_ know?"

Scorpius looked up. "That– what?"

Giving him a gentle smile, Teddy reached out and pushed a lock of Scorpius's hair off his forehead. "That you were in love with James," he said quietly.

Scorpius paled. "I'm not. He's– your boyfriend, Lupin. I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yes, you do. And it's okay. I'm not mad. Just curious."

Scorpius was quiet for a long moment, as if about to reveal the secrets of the universe, but then he shook his head. "I just wanted him to notice me," he said quietly. "I already told you about that. I didn't mean for the Ouija board to–"

"It's not about that. We sorted that bit." He held Scorpius's gaze. "When did you _know_?"

A faraway look overtaking his features, Scorpius stared off down the corridor. "Okay." He scratched the back of his neck. "That first day with the board, in class. James insisted on fucking up my plan and asking it the name of his boyfriend. Everyone was laughing," he added. "And then we both had our hands on the planchette, and it was spelling out letters. But I..." He pressed his lips together, his gaze falling to his lap.

Teddy waited. Before he knew what he was doing, one hand had come up to rest on Scorpius's knee, squeezing it reassuringly. "I'm not mad," he said again.

"I didn't mean to move it, and I don't even know if I did. But the sound of those words coming out of his mouth – 'who's my _boyfriend_ ,' bloody hell, I don't know. It started spelling your name, but also–" his face was pinched as he forced the word out – " _mine_. And, fuck, when I thought about it, it was so obvious. The S is right beside the T. The C is pretty close to the E. And it just–" His face shuttered.

Ah.

Teddy swallowed.

"The idea that my name could be there too, on his lips, at his fingertips, right next to yours... I don't know. I've never been able to stop thinking about it." His voice dropped to a whisper, and Teddy squeezed Scorpius's knee again. "I'm sorry. Fuck." Scorpius shuffled away. "I'm not going to fight you for him or anything. Obviously." He glanced down at his slender frame.

Teddy forced a smile. "You don't have to fight me for him." But what did he have to do? It occurred to Teddy then, sitting with Scorpius alone in that vast, empty hallway, that it was one thing for Teddy and James to have each other, to talk though this passing lust for Scorpius, even enact a few fantasies and then make each other promise that they wouldn't actually act on them.

It was something else entirely for Scorpius, though, who had no one to talk to, no one to share with, and no one to enact his fantasies with. Or to love him back.

At least, not openly.

"Hey." With a sigh, Teddy put his arm up, inviting Scorpius to move closer. When he did, eyeing Teddy warily, Teddy rested his arm around Scorpius's shoulders, smiling to himself when Scorpius let his head fall to Teddy's shoulder. His fingers crept up the back of Scorpius's neck and slid through his hair in gentle caresses. He heard Scorpius sigh with contentment, and they sat there for awhile like that, both, Teddy could only imagine, trying not to think about everything they wanted but couldn't have.

***

 **_Week 3_ **

 

"Hey, where's that file on Mrs Tithers?"

"My best guess? In the filing cabinet."

"Funny. That's hilarious. Let's pretend I've looked, and it's not there."

Teddy looked up from his book and set his quill down. He sighed. "Then it's–" he waved his hand around the office – "around here somewhere."

Bill gave him a pinched smile. "Find it. And bring it to me," he said. "Please."

Grumbling, Teddy pushed his chair back and started rummaging on the conference table. "I thought you sorted that one."

"I did, but I need her Floo coordinates."

Teddy blinked at him until Bill sighed, folding his arms over his chest and looking away.

"She's old and lonely and I said I'd have tea with her this week, all right?"

Teddy grinned.

"Don't say it." Bill aimed his index finger at Teddy, who held up his hands in surrender. "Just get me the file."

After rummaging through various piles of parchment around the office for twenty minutes, Teddy sank back down in his chair and considered his options for how to tell Bill that the Tithers file appeared to have got up on its own steam and walked out of the office.

"Got it yet?"

"I'm _looking_ ," Teddy called back. "I don't know what the fuck I did with it," he muttered to himself.

Bill strode out of his office again, his hair tied back a bit neater and his cloak arranged gracefully over his arm. "Meeting Fleur for lunch," he grumbled. "Find the file, kid."

Pushing down a grin, Teddy gave him a slight bow and extended his arm as if to show him the door. Lunch. Yeah, right. As it turned out, Bill didn't come back that afternoon, so Teddy gave up on his hunt for the damn file. He ordered in lunch for himself and finished off some other paperwork at a leisurely pace, wishing Bill would stay away from the office a bit more often.

He was just signing off on another case later in the afternoon when James's head appeared in the office Floo.

"Hey. Almost done?"

Teddy glanced up. "Oh. Yeah." He squinted. James was antsy as hell, his eyes darting behind him every few seconds. "What's up?"

"Nothing. Just missed you." He gave Teddy his warmest smile.

"Flirt."

"Tease."

"Have you eaten? I've got takeaway I can bring back." Teddy gestured at the open cartons.

"No. Yeah, I mean. I'm good. I've got–" Here his grin widened even further until he was outright laughing, shaking his head and pressing his palm to his forehead. "I've got dessert." He laughed again and gestured at something behind him.

"Uh, okay. Give me a minute and I'll be through."

"Okay. You might want to hurry. And Teddy?" His face turned serious for a moment, and he dropped his voice to a whisper.

"You all right? You're acting weird."

"No, I'm fine," insisted James. "Just, don't get mad if you don't want it. I only thought– never mind. Come home. Okay? I've got something to show you."

This did not bode well. James's head disappeared in a poof of flames, and Teddy hastily scratched his name across the last of the scrolls and Flooed home –

– to find Scorpius Malfoy shirtless on his bed and James – also shirtless, dear God – mixing drinks in the kitchen.

Teddy took his outer robe off and rolled up his sleeves. James bounded out of the kitchen, his face flushed with excitement, and pressed a pink cocktail into Teddy's hand. "Dessert?" Teddy raised an eyebrow.

"Do you hate me?"

Teddy gave him a lopsided smile, crossing his arms over his chest. "No."

"Good. Because Malfoy and I were talking, and he's really getting tired of wanking. So I thought we should have him over again."

"Have him over."

"Again. Yeah. Because we should, uh–"

"I'm seventeen, Lupin," Scorpius called from the bed.

"This isn't a good idea." Teddy tested the pink cocktail, gagging and giving it back to James. Grinning and aiming his wand, James Summoned a beer from the kitchen and passed it to Teddy.

"Have a drink. The idea will seem better."

"It's not a bad idea in the first place," Scorpius was insisting from the bed. "Please, Lupin?"

"He said _please_ ," James pointed out. "Said you keep showing up at his house for that case and being so painfully nice to him, when all he wants is for you to bend him over the furniture and shag him stupid. You're torturing the poor lad, Teddy."

"Torturing him. Christ." Teddy took a long swig on the bottle and then wiped the back of his hand over his mouth. He leaned closer to James and lowered his voice. "It wasn't that long ago that you were really bloody pissed off at me for admitting I might want this." He forced James's gaze. "Don't do it for me. You have to want it."

James gave him a heartfelt smile, his face melting with emotion. He leaned in and brushed a kiss over Teddy's lips. "I want it," he murmured. "Just like last time. If you're not jealous, then I'm not jealous. And don't worry about him," he added, gesturing over his shoulder. "He's fine. It's not like we treat him badly." He grinned. "He's pretty happy with the arrangement."

"Is he, now...?" said Teddy slowly, his eyes sliding to Scorpius. Beside him, he felt James tense a bit, and Teddy did his best to push aside his arousal and try to really bloody think this through. It was still a terrible idea. He ran his hand down James's arm. "Don't do it for me," he repeated, his voice low and insistent. " _Don't_."

James's face shuttered for a moment, his lips pressed together, but it was so quick Teddy almost missed it. In another second, he was tugging at Teddy's hand to lead him over. "I'm not," he said. "Promise. It's for both of us, right? Together. _That_ I can handle."

A flash of guilt seared through Teddy's body. Together. He took a deep breath. Maybe this would be a way of erasing his mistake, Teddy tried to reason. Maybe, in his own way, he could make it up to James now, do this the way he should have done it that night at Draco's party. Still tentative, Teddy drew his arm around James's shoulders as they moved toward the bed.

Obediently, James crawled onto it and sat with Scorpius, the pair of them blinking up at Teddy like eager little puppies.

"Have you been messing around while I was at work?" He took another drink before setting his bottle down. His fingers moved to unbutton his shirt before he could stop them.

"Malfoy wanted to, but I said we should wait."

"I did not."

"Ow!" James gripped his abused arm while Scorpius pouted.

Teddy pushed his shirt off his shoulders and dropped it to the floor, approaching the bed. Scorpius immediately crawled forward, pressing his mouth to Teddy's abdomen and letting his fingers skim lightly around Teddy's back.

"Let me stay?" asked Scorpius quietly, gazing up at Teddy.

With a groan, Teddy shoved his fingers through Scorpius's hair and brought his mouth to his skin again. Christ. This bloody kid would be the death of him – both him and James.

"Take your clothes off," said Teddy quietly, his fingers sliding halfway into the back pockets of his trousers as he watched. He had ceased to be able to make good decisions and had pretty much resigned himself to that fact. He'd jumped into their last romp without thinking a single thing beyond the immediate needs of his cock, so why should this one be any different? He tried to summon Charlie's pep talk in his head. It wasn't wrong to want this. It wasn't. Was it?

Scorpius obeyed, rising to shed his trousers and pants before crawling onto the bed again and sinking back. Beside him, James had kicked his clothes aside too and was now wetting his lips, his gaze wandering over Scorpius's body.

He ran his hand lightly up Scorpius's stomach and chest, pausing to catch his fingernail over a nipple or dip his fingers into the light hair gathered low on Scorpius's abdomen, and Teddy grinned as he watched how skillfully James avoided touching Scorpius's prick. Scorpius didn't seem to know where to look, his face alight but his body tense as his gaze flickered between James, naked beside him, and Teddy, half-clothed and watching from beside the bed.

"Hey, Malfoy?"

Scorpius blinked over at James, who was concentrating on the path of his fingers up Scorpius's shoulder and down his bicep before circling around to his hip.

"You want Teddy to touch you?"

A stutter of breath hit the room from both Teddy and Scorpius, and James only grinned. He glanced up at Teddy.

"I think that's a yes," he told him.

"Of course it's a yes," said Scorpius with an impatient sigh, "but I'd rather that was code for, do I want him to _fuck_ me."

"It's not." Teddy took a step forward. He let his fingers dangle down to the bed, just barely dusting over Scorpius's thigh. It had the desired effect, as Scorpius sucked in a breath, his gaze dropping to his leg as he followed the path of Teddy's fingers. "It's just touching."

But they both knew it was more than that, and when Scorpius raised his eyes again, Teddy held his gaze carefully. It wasn't that long ago that Teddy had insisted that even this was crossing a line, after all. No touching because Scorpius was too young. No touching because James wasn't there.

It was possible Teddy had finally run out of excuses.

James was quiet for once and still – Teddy silently prayed – oblivious to the episode on the Malfoy loo when Teddy had heroically _not touched_ Scorpius. James's lips were parted and wet as he watched the path of Teddy's fingers up Scorpius's thigh. He swept them up towards his hip, then over, just shy of brushing Scorpius's cock. Teddy finally had the kid here, spread out underneath him with James flushed with arousal beside them. He wasn't going to let this end too quickly. He moved the pads of his fingers past Scorpius's balls and on to the inside of his thigh, a feather-light caress that made Scorpius moan.

"Just touching," gasped Scorpius. "Okay."

"Ah, we were brutes last time," said James, leaning down to begin planting kisses over Scorpius's shoulder and chest. "Went straight for hide the salami. Don't get me wrong, that was brilliant. But sometimes Teddy likes doing things a bit different." He grinned against Scorpius's skin, his tongue sliding over a nipple and his hair falling over his brow.

Teddy rolled his eyes, pausing and beckoning James up. He kissed him with a slow intensity, making sure Scorpius could see every bit of it, and then pushed him away playfully. Climbing onto the bed, he straddled Scorpius's thighs and planted his hands on either side of his shoulders, gazing down at him. Scorpius fell very still, his arms spread out beside his head and his torso pulled taut. Teddy leaned down, just the tip of his tongue carefully catching one of Scorpius's nipples.

Scorpius took in a shuddering breath.

"Someone's got to teach you lads," he began, "that there's more to sex than something tight around your cock or something thick shoved up your arse."

James and Scorpius moaned together, James falling back down to the bed beside Scorpius and gazing up at Teddy with a blissful grin on his face.

" _Why_ ," he moaned, "would we waste our time on anything other than those things?"

"I would," Scorpius piped up without missing a beat, looking up at Teddy with awe before turning his head on the pillow and grinning at James. "I'll waste my time. Come on, let's see what the werewolf wants."

"The werewolf," said James, laughing, "should stop taking the high road here and pretending _he_ doesn't want something tight around his cock or something thick shoved up his arse." He reached out and curled his fingers into the waist of Teddy's trousers, tugging, until Scorpius joined him.

"Bugger off, both of you." But Teddy couldn't hide a grin as he climbed off the bed and unbuttoned his trousers at last, because they were both ridiculous, weren't they? Just like before, they could make each other moan and then fight like cats in the next breath. He wasn't sure he'd ever be able to get enough of them – that was the bloody scary part.

He shed the rest of his clothes and turned to take another swig of his beer. He was never _nervous_ about sex. It had always been one of the constant things in his life that he could count on, as stupid as that sounded. Sex was always fun and athletic and interesting and new and random and loving and dynamite and either with James or with someone else, he'd never given it a tonne of thought; it had always just _happened_ , and that was the way he liked it.

Even before, with Scorpius. It had just happened. Why overthink it? James was right: they both wanted Scorpius, so why not have him over again and spend the night with him?

No big deal.

Except when Teddy turned around again, following the sounds coming from the bed, James had curled himself over and around Scorpius's body, pinning him to the mattress and letting one hand grip his arse possessively while his mouth covered Scorpius's in a bruising kiss.

"Fuck. Potter," Scorpius was gasping, arching up into him, bending his knee around James's thigh and holding him in place, their chests damp together and their pricks already hard and sliding, and fuck, it was so much more than bodies entwined. James pulled his mouth off Scorpius's, and while Scorpius moaned against his neck, planting kisses there, James glanced over at Teddy. There was something off about that look, with James's chin raised and his hand shoved possessively through Scorpius's hair.

Ah. They could share, but only on James's terms. Okay. He could deal with that. After telling him that bloody fantasy, he owed it to James, after all, to prove that James was still a part of this. Maybe even the most important part. Teddy gave him a smile, hoping to soften James's expression.

When he climbed onto the bed to join them, Teddy focused only on _touch_ , letting his hands and mouth move over both of them quietly, almost on the outskirts of their own more desperate activities: his palm light over James's back; his fingertips soft over Scorpius's collarbone; his lips wet over James's chest; his tongue tracing careful secrets over Scorpius's hip.

"Lupin," whimpered Scorpius, his fingers entangled in James's hair while the other hand slid down Teddy's arm. He pushed his hips up, his cock red and dripping. Grinning, James backed away a bit, giving Teddy a nudge and biting lightly at his shoulder.

"Taste him," James whispered to Teddy, his voice low and rough, and Christ, Teddy didn't have the willpower to say, _Oh no, you first_ , and so he did, he had to, he spread his fingers out over Scorpius's abdomen to hold him down while his tongue touched gingerly to the head of his cock.

A sob tore from Scorpius's throat at the tiny touch.

Teddy glanced up Scorpius's body, not moving his tongue. Scorpius fell stock still, trembling. Still holding his gaze, Teddy pressed in a bit further but still held himself back, trailing the tip of his tongue slowly down Scorpius's cock and back up. When he got back to the top, he leaned in a little bit further, letting his lips touch the head in a soft kiss.

Okay. It really had been a spectacular idea not to actually do this for awhile, to feign imperiousness and keep the kid at arm's length, because now that he was here, with his lips hovering over Scorpius's prick and his fingers damp over Scorpius's skin, there really wasn't any way to stop or rewind or pretend it wasn't fucking brilliant and fuck, he was absolutely done for.

"God, Teddy." That was James, his voice almost cracking and his own hand diving for his cock as he watched.

"Tease," gasped Scorpius. "This is torture."

Teddy grinned, his lips still light against the slick head of Scorpius's prick. Scorpius's stomach muscles clenched under Teddy's hand. Slowly, because the fact that they were both watching so intently was half the appeal here, he parted his lips and began to slide them down. In contrast to his first gentle approach, he took Scorpius in deeply, letting him push up into Teddy's mouth and holding him there for a moment. He slid back up and released him, letting Scorpius's cock fall back against his stomach, wet and thick, and then Teddy sat back on his heels.

Scorpius blinked at him for a few seconds as if coming out of a daze, and then all in a rush, he sat up and dove forward, clutching at Teddy and crashing their mouths together. "Lupin," he muttered between gasps for air. " _Fuck_."

Teddy opened his eyes to check James's reaction but only found him sitting heavy-lidded at the top of the bed, squeezing his prick and breathing through his mouth. His lips curved up in a half-smile when he caught Teddy's eye, and with that blessing, Teddy gripped Scorpius around the back of the neck, closed his eyes, and let himself fall.

The kid was eager if unpracticed, but he more than made up for it in desperation and enthusiasm. His lips were warm and wet and he tasted of gin or vodka or something he shouldn't have been drinking, and Teddy found himself grinning against his mouth, his tongue easing off Scorpius's as he pulled back, brushing his fingers down the kid's cheek.

"Oh God, can we do the tight things around cocks now? Or–" he paused to whimper, squeezing his eyes closed as his head fell to Teddy's shoulder – "the big things shoved up arses? I can't– I need to–" He was already shuddering in Teddy's arms.

"Relax, Malfoy." James moved up behind Scorpius with a soothing hand on his shoulder blade and a quiet kiss to the back of his neck. "What do you want?"

Scorpius turned his head and let James capture his mouth in a slow kiss. When they parted, Scorpius's gaze travelled down Teddy's body and his fingers instinctively reached between Teddy's legs. Teddy watched him quietly as those slender fingers touched Teddy's cock for the first time. Teddy felt himself pulse underneath the touch, the look of arousal on Scorpius's face so plain that visions of throwing Scorpius down and shoving himself inside blasted through Teddy's head before he could stop them.

Fuck, no, he'd tear the kid up in this state. He took a deep breath and glanced over Scorpius's shoulder at James for help, but James always had been the devil's own child.

"You want him to fuck you?" James murmured in Scorpius's ear, his wicked hand joining Scorpius's on Teddy's prick.

Teddy stilled. Mouth falling open, he shot a glare at James.

"It'll hurt like hell the first time," he added as Scorpius fell back against James's chest, moaning, "but then it's so worth it."

Teddy closed his eyes to gain control, visions of James's first time flashing through his mind, slow and hot and yeah, _worth it_ was one way to put it. They were all sitting up now, Scorpius almost in Teddy's lap and James crowded behind him, and Teddy ran one hand down each of their chests, considering his options. He caught James's eye and tried to read the fierceness there. Yeah. They had a problem. He leaned in and brushed a kiss over Scorpius's lips, igniting again at the knowledge of what this damn kid could do to him, before pulling back and gazing at James. "Not tonight," he said at last, wetting his lips. "I got to touch," he added. "I'm happy."

Scorpius gave a small cry of exasperation, falling back down to the bed and flinging his arm over his forehead. "What? Come _on_."

James's lips parted as he stared at Teddy, and then his face finally softened. He ducked his head down and smiled.

Teddy reached out and tilted James's chin towards him with his forefinger, forcing eye contact. "Not tonight," he repeated quietly for James alone, and relief crashed over him when James gave him a tiny nod. "I've another task for you," added Teddy as he turned back to Scorpius, his palm sliding up Scorpius's thigh. He pulled James close with his other arm, relishing the familiarity and constant burn of desire he always felt around James. James's dark hair was thick in Teddy's fingers, his lips swollen and his body tense with anticipation. It was amazing, Teddy mused, how much Scorpius's presence, all petulant brat and teenage bravado, could make James suddenly seem so much older and wiser. "All right?" Teddy murmured to him, his cheek close to James's, and James smiled at him in return, warm and open and a bit devious.

"Yeah. Tell me what you're thinking." He glanced over his shoulder at Scorpius and his grin deepened.

Teddy turned to Scorpius. "You haven't sucked a cock yet, have you, Malfoy?"

A deep flush crept over Scorpius's face, and his lips parted as he shook his head.

"Will you let him suck you?" Teddy asked James. "I want to see that."

Scorpius wasted no time, turning around to push James down to the bed and crawl between his legs. He grinned wickedly, his own cock bobbing over James's thigh.

"Does he know what he's doing?" James lifted an eyebrow even as he moved a hand down to tangle in Scorpius's hair.

"Mind your teeth," murmured Teddy, earning a glare over his shoulder from Scorpius.

He lifted James's prick with almost comical reverence, using both his hands to stroke it. A small whimper escaped his lips, and his tongue darted out to wet them probably without him even knowing it. James clenched his stomach muscles as he sat up a bit to watch, his hair falling over his eyes and his lips wet with anticipation. He glanced up at Teddy over Scorpius's shoulder and gave him a wicked smile.

Scorpius started out doing to James what Teddy had done to him moments before, his tongue peeking out from his mouth as he touched just the tip of it to James's cock. Unlike Scorpius before, though, James didn't have the patience for that. His hand reached down to grasp the base, and he angled himself to better aim at Scorpius's lips.

"Oh, fuck off. I'm getting there."

"Get there faster, Malfoy," muttered James, but his voice was warm and breathless. "I've already sucked you more times than I can remember. You owe me."

"Oh, please. Try _once_." Scorpius sat up. "And if you hadn't–"

"Scorpius." Teddy really never meant to fall into the role of leader here, but he couldn't deny that it was hot as fuck, the way both of them responded to him when he raised his voice even a little bit. He paused to wrap his fingers lightly around his own prick, giving it a squeeze. When Scorpius glanced back at him again, his eyes fluttering down to Teddy's crotch, Teddy murmured, "He's right. You owe him."

Scorpius's face slid into a lazy grin at that, his tongue wetting his lips. He spared one last remorseful look at Teddy's thick cock instead, before turning back to James and kneeling between his legs.

Teddy had never seen that pouting mouth put to better use.

Scorpius took to his task eagerly, parting his lips to let James push his cock through them. He dove down deep the first time, his jaw strained and his nostrils flaring as he took in air, but his eyes fluttered closed and oh yeah, Teddy had no doubt about the kid's sexuality, no doubt in his mind that he'd been dreaming of this for who knew how long.

James's eyes were hooded as he watched, his fingers still lazily stroking through Scorpius's hair. "Fuck, Malfoy," he breathed as Scorpius pulled off, licking the head of James's cock with his tongue flat and wet before swallowing him down again. "Knew you'd be fucking good at this; anyone who talks as much as you do has got to know what to do with his mouth. Oh yeah. Like that. Look at him, Teddy." James raised his eyes, his chest heaving and a devilish grin on his face. "Look at that mouth."

Scorpius's face coloured at the praise, but he kept to his task, his back muscles flexing as he moved up and down James's shaft. On impulse, since hey, touching was allowed now and Teddy hadn't had nearly enough of that yet, he reached out to run his hand up Scorpius's back in smooth, steady circles. Scorpius groaned, trying to keep his mouth on James's prick while leaning back into Teddy's touch.

"You look like you're enjoying this," Teddy murmured in his ear, moving up behind him with both hands gliding over Scorpius's back now. His prick swept up the inside of Scorpius's thigh as he curled over the kid's back. He pressed hot kisses over Scorpius's shoulders and neck, watching James's prick disappear into his mouth over and over again. His own prick felt hot and heavy between his legs, and Christ, Teddy hadn't quite anticipated just how difficult it was going to be to touch, to be allowed to _touch_ at last, and still maintain some sort of control.

"Lupin," moaned Scorpius, pulling his mouth free for a moment and dropping his head to James's stomach so he could push back against Teddy. "Either get your prick inside me, or move it the fuck out of the way. This is the meanest thing ever."

James swallowed a laugh, rubbing his hands over his face, while Teddy glanced down to see that what had been feeling so good while he kissed Scorpius's back had been his engorged cock slipping between Scorpius's legs, stroking inside his thighs and up under his balls.

He paused to reach for the jar of lube beside his bed. Breathing hard, he slid some over his prick and then returned to Scorpius, who had sat up to watch him, transfixed. His hands trembled a bit, but he tried to steady them by focusing, pressing them against Scorpius's hips to coax his thighs together as he began to push his cock through them. He nudged Scorpius's balls until the tip of his cock slid past them and hit the base of Scorpius's.

"Fuck, Teddy," gasped James, his gaze transfixed between Scorpius's legs as Teddy thrust through. Scorpius was nearly done for, it seemed, his fists clenched over James's hips. He fell forward again, his cheek mashed to James's groin.

"Feel good, Malfoy?" breathed Teddy, but Scorpius only whimpered and pushed back.

"Go _inside_ , you bastard." He gasps turned choked, and Teddy eased off, grasping his prick at the base and moving it down the back of one of Scorpius's thighs, away from his sensitive places. "Yeah, that's the wrong way." Scorpius whirled his head to the side, glaring over his shoulder.

Teddy leaned forward again, biting at Scorpius's earlobe even as he caught James's eye. "When I'm ready to fuck you," he breathed, "you'll know it. But not yet. I believe you have a job to do." He nodded down at James's straining cock, thick and wet against his stomach.

" _Thank_ you," sighed James, arching his hips up. "Come on, Malfoy. Get your mind off your own arse for two seconds and suck me off. He said he's not going to fuck you, all right? Quit whinging about it."

Teddy winced at James's tone, kicking himself for letting this happen when James clearly wasn't ready, still bruised from the fantasies and the jealousies and confusion of his own emotions and desires.

Scorpius, meanwhile, had bent to his task again with a rough scrape of teeth, it seemed.

James jerked back, his fingers tightening in Scorpius's hair. He didn't say anything, but his eyes flashed.

"Oops." With a shrug and a put-out little sigh, Scorpius took him in again, stretching his mouth over James's cock.

"Come on, you little slag," murmured James, and Teddy wasn't sure he was joking, but Christ, James's filthy mouth was one of the things Teddy had always found most arousing about him in bed, so he let it go. "You know you want it – ah." He arched up again as Scorpius swallowed around him, gripping James with one fist and letting him fuck Scorpius's mouth as deep as he could.

Teddy moved in close behind Scorpius again as James came. He watched him swallow every drop, his eyes shut and his throat working, and while he watched, Teddy reached around and grasped Scorpius's prick. Scorpius's face collapsed in bliss, and he struggled to keep his mouth sealed. "That's it, Malfoy," murmured Teddy, his fist slow and steady over Scorpius's cock. "How long have you wanted to be on your knees in front of James, just like this?"

Scorpius moaned and sputtered, finally pulling his mouth free and wiping it with the back of one hand. "Not _that_ long," he shot back over his shoulder. Teddy squeezed his prick a bit too hard, and with a shout, Scorpius clenched his jaw and fell down to his elbows over James's stomach.

"Hold him still for me," Teddy muttered to James, and then he pressed up against Scorpius once more, grasping Scorpius's prick in one hand while the other shoved his own between Scorpius's thighs. James smacked Scorpius on one hip, and with a gasp, he obligingly closed his thighs again. Christ, he felt good. Teddy moved his mouth into the back of Scorpius's hair, watching James over Scorpius's shoulder, and fucked through his damp crack, over his balls, nudging the base of his prick with each thrust. It was almost as good as being inside him, _almost_ , and clearly Scorpius had never felt anything like it, because he was groaning against James's chest, letting James's arms come around him and pull them both in closer while Teddy rutted against him.

Teddy felt Scorpius stiffen between them and grunt out his release, coming hot and fast over Teddy's fist, over James's stomach, shuddering and panting and completely falling apart. "Fuck," breathed Teddy, pulling his prick back. James and Scorpius were both tousled and sweaty and fucked out underneath him, and it was impossible to hold back, impossible to know who to look at, impossible to imagine sex ever being any other way but this now, with both of them so hard and gorgeous and willing. Teddy fisted his cock, his hand flying over it as it began to pulse in his fingers, thick and wet and oh, Christ, _oh_ , Scorpius had fallen limp underneath him, murmuring encouragement at him and oh, okay, he wanted this, wanted exactly what Teddy was going to do, and before he could think any more about it, Teddy was coming in hot white streaks over Scorpius's back. It dripped down over his arse and into his cleft, and Teddy could only moan as he watched, his body flying and his mind falling blank.

His breath was hot over Scorpius's shoulder blade when he opened his eyes. James was whinging at them to get off him, and Scorpius was boneless and useless, and Teddy never, ever wanted to stop doing this, _being_ exactly this, the way they were right now.

James shot him a grin over Scorpius's deadened lump of a body, and yeah, okay, James had been right; they _should_ have done this a long fucking time ago. But he was truly fucked now. There wouldn't be any going back from this, no way he and James could revert to the way things were before, pretending Scorpius didn't matter to them, pretending they didn't want to –

"Well done, Lupin," managed Scorpius, lifting his head and rolling off James at last. He glanced down the bed with bleary eyes. His hair was a mess and face was still flushed. Teddy grinned at him. "Knew you couldn't keep your hands to yourself for long."

The grin faded.

" _No touching_ ," he mocked, and oh, Christ, _no_. "Yes, look at Hercules over here with his willpower." Scorpius yawned, closing his eyes again. "But wanking on my face, and now my back? Someday you're going to have to actually fuck me, you know."

"Your face?" James laughed. "Malfoy, you're delusional. We never... did... that..." His face fell as he glanced at Teddy for agreement, and _fuck_ , Teddy wanted the last four seconds back. He knew what Scorpius was about to say, he fucking knew it, but his reaction wasn't ready; his face should have been schooled into a confused grin rather than etched with lines of guilt.

James's hand stilled over Scorpius's chest. A frown tugged at his lips, but he kept his head down. The room went unbearably quiet as Scorpius drifted off.

Finally, James raised his head and met Teddy's eyes. James had never been able to hide a single thing on that beautiful face of his, and now was no exception. Fury warred with pain all over his features, his eyes alight but his mouth pressed shut.

"James–"

"So, you didn't lie, technically," he said quietly. "I remember exactly what you said when I asked, and you said you hadn't touched him." James forced a wry laugh. "Fantastic. Look at you and your word games. It's a bit of genius, really."

Scorpius cracked an eye open at James's raised voice.

"Your dad would be so proud, Lupin," said James coldly, climbing off the bed and grabbing his jeans. "You think that's what he'd say to your mum after a night of _not touching_ Sirius Black?"

Oh, hell no. "Shut the fuck up," growled Teddy, trying to keep his hands from shaking.

Scorpius sat up, glancing with wide eyes between Teddy and James. As if realising his mistake, he gave Teddy a pleading expression.

"Of all the fucking people," continued James, stabbing his feet into his jeans and hauling them up, "my _mother_ was the one who was right about you. She said after how you treated Victoire, there was no way you could be trusted."

"What the fuck does she know about Victoire?" snapped Teddy.

James ignored him, pulling his t-shirt over his head. "Thanks for the shag, Malfoy. So glad I could help when you didn't know what to do with your secret cock fetish."

"Potter, look, I didn't mean to–"

"Yes, you did." James ran a hand through his hair, looking defeated. "You did." He mashed his lips together. "I fucking knew it," he muttered to himself. "Fine. So, there he is." He swirled his hand towards Teddy. "You can have him. He likes his coffee white and he only smokes when he's either a nervous wreck, or he's thinking about his parents. If his hair goes blond, he's depressed, and if it goes black, you'd better get your clothes off right away or he might just rip right through them."

"Come on, James. Christ." Teddy climbed off the bed and started towards him. "Get back here and we'll talk about this."

James grabbed a fistful of Floo powder, ignoring Teddy. "Wanking on someone's face, though," he mused. "You know, I didn't actually know he liked that one."

"Fuck, where are you going?"

But James only turned on his heel and called out his mother's address. Teddy winced, pausing beside the bed. No sense following there or he risked a wand through his testicles. He ran his hands through his hair and turned to Scorpius, quietly crowded against the headboard with his eyes downcast.

"Get dressed," he said with a sigh. "I'll make coffee."

Scorpius's head snapped up. "And then what? We'll have a cuppa and reminisce about how fabulous James used to be, back when he was still speaking to us? You told me you'd tell him!" He pounded a fist into the bed, angry eyes on Teddy.

"Maybe it's not your fucking business what I tell him or don't," snapped Teddy. "Why can't you keep your mouth shut for once?"

Scorpius looked stricken. "Because I shouldn't have to," he said, his voice quiet but fierce. "Because I've done nothing but keep secrets ever since this whole thing started with you two, and yet here you are, parading around like you're these perfect, honest little faggots. Like your life's an open book. Spare me," he spat. "If you really loved each other as much as you keep saying, you wouldn't need me."

"We _don't_ need you," said Teddy coldly. "I should have put an end to this months ago."

"Oh, don't do me any favours, Lupin." He jumped off the bed and stalked around the room, gathering his strewn clothes. He threw them on as quickly as he could, stumbling into his trouser legs and buttoning his shirt wrong.

"Malfoy, wait," sighed Teddy, slumping against the wall. "I didn't mean that, all right? Just..."

But Scorpius had a temper even worse than James's, Teddy could now see. He hurtled a handful of powder into the Floo and strode through before Teddy could stop him.

***

"So. How's Campbell, then? Your move."

"Eh. She's all right. Hey, put my queen back!"

"Oops. Grabbed the wrong one."

"Yeah, sure."

"Just all right?"

"What do you want, a play-by-play?"

Teddy dusted the Floo powder off his shirt. Victoire always hated when he got the stuff on her carpet. He heard chess pieces clanking together and Albus's telltale whine from the kitchen. "Hello?" he called, dropping his bag by the fireplace.

"In here," Victoire called back. "Aha! Bishop to king," she added in a lower voice, and Al sputtered.

"Put that back," he insisted. "You cheated."

Teddy walked into Victoire's kitchen just in time to see her lower her lashes and give Al a slow smile. Teddy paused at the door and gave her an amused look. Catching sight of him, she cleared her throat and sat up straighter, her blouse settling a bit more into place.

Still staring at where her drooping collar had just been, Al jumped at the sound of Teddy's footsteps behind him.

"She always cheats," Teddy said in his ear, giving his shoulder a squeeze as he passed behind him to grab a beer out of the refrigerator.

"Do I?" she drawled, leaning back in her chair and flashing a knowing smile at him. "Well, you would know, wouldn't you?"

Teddy gave her a look before flipping the cap off his beer.

"Agh, no talking about your break up, you guys. God. And hey, get me a beer, too?"

Teddy leaned back against the pantry door. "Oh, did I miss your eighteenth birthday? How awful of me."

"Wanker," muttered Al, turning back to the board and slumping over with his forehead resting on one fist. "Speaking of cheating," he added, glancing at Teddy with a cold look, "James is at home playing Sebastien Kont at full volume and singing at the top of his lungs about betrayal and anguish and then rewinding that fucking terrible guitar solo. Don't suppose you'd know anything about that?"

"Why, Al, I didn't know you cared." Teddy swallowed a swig of beer to drown out the ache in his chest. Four days, and still neither James nor Scorpius would answer his owls. He would have to move on to more assertive ways of fixing this, he knew, but for now all he wanted was a beer and Victoire's sympathetic ear. Albus wasn't exactly a hidden prize he'd hoped to uncover when he thought to visit her.

"I don't _care_ , except if he's finally chucked you, then I can set him up with Campbell's sister, and she can bloody well ask him herself why he ever turned into a shirt lifter in the first place. I'm tired of trying to answer."

"Campbell's sister is a pole dancer in that back room of the Hog's Head," Victoire piped up, "so she's basically forfeited all opinions of anyone else's sex life." She took a drag on the cigarette lying dormant in the ashtray, winking at Teddy.

"And you'd know that how?" Al's face coloured and his voice ratcheted up a notch.

Victoire pasted on an innocent look. "What, you thought all this was for _him_?" She trailed a finger down the front of her blouse, gesturing at Teddy. "I've a few skeletons in my closet."

Al gaped. "You. Agh. _God_. You do not. You've not _pole danced_." He trailed off into a tortured moan, squeezing his eyes shut.

Over his head, Teddy shook his head at Victoire. She just smiled back, crossing her legs and nudging Al's knee with one ankle.

Al ignored her, though his face still burned, and Teddy could only imagine the images running through his head. "What _did_ you do?" he asked Teddy, eyes narrowed as he turned the conversation back to James. "He spends, like, an entire year walking around with Teddy-shaped hearts in his eyes, and now all of a sudden he won't come out of his room and nearly hexed my balls off for asking why he wasn't off nancing about with you."

"Oh, darling." Victoire took another drag, her eyes roving over Al. "Are they all right?" She smiled slyly when Al went bright red.

"He didn't _actually_ – okay." He glared at them. "You do understand that I hate you both, right?"

Victoire pouted. "You can't hate your favourite cousin, Albus."

"Hugo's my favourite cousin," he grumbled, still glaring, "so no, I can't. I can hate you, though." He gestured at Teddy. "And you're not my cousin. I don't even know what you are."

"Nice. Thanks, Al. Feeling's mutual."

"Oh, why are you two such dicks?" snapped Victoire, stubbing out her cigarette and fishing in her pocket for another.

It was a good enough question, and Teddy had never quite been able to suss out why Albus could reduce him to the maturity level of a thirteen-year-old, but the kid was a pain in the arse and had given James a hell of a time over the past few years, so family or no, Teddy just couldn't be arsed to play dutiful older brother to a prick like Al. Harry coming out had pretty much sealed the deal on his prickishness, and most days when he wasn't either ignoring or insulting James, he was whinging to anyone who would listen about how Harry's adventures with cock had ruined Al's life.

"He started it." Al folded his arms over his chest. "What are you even doing here?"

Teddy exchanged a look with Victoire at that, because honestly, did the kid _actually_ think he'd be able to knock the chess board out of the way after a few matches and get her to take off her knickers? She wasn't terribly picky about things like that, but Teddy was fairly certain even she had standards that started higher than her teenage cousin. "Came to steal Victoire's beer, obviously."

She grinned up at him, her lips sealed around her fag.

Al turned back to the board with a huff, scrunching his shoulders and pretending to examine the pieces very closely. Just to be more of a dick, because he was in a foul mood, Teddy reached out and moved a piece for him. It was a good move. Al should have seen it already, especially if he'd spent any time playing with Hugo, chess master extraordinaire.

"Oi, fuck off," muttered Al, but as he went to bat Teddy's hand away, he stopped. He grasped Teddy's wrist, looking closely at it, and then shifted his gaze to Teddy's other arm. "Oh, _seriously_?" he muttered to himself, his gaze growing colder as he dropped his grip and shoved Teddy away from him.

"What are you doing?"

"You're not even wearing it?" Al's voice rose. "What kind of dumb fuck are you? Okay, no, don't answer that."

"Albus," murmured Victoire, her voice low but full of warning. "Come on."

Al backed away, holding his hands up in surrender. "Okay, I don't know much about being boyfriends–" he paused and made jazz hands at the word – "but if I gave Campbell a bracelet and she went around not wearing it? I'd be pissed off. So if James is pissed off, you might start there."

Teddy blinked at him, his eyes falling to his wrist. "What bracelet?" He glanced at Victoire, but she only shook her head.

"Look, he tells me exactly nothing about you two, because he knows I think it's sick, but he comes home a couple weeks ago and wouldn't shut the fuck up about how brilliant you are, and what a good lay you are–"

Victoire let out a tiny grunt, biting her lower lip. Christ, her and that overactive imagination.

"–and how I could say whatever I wanted about it, you two were going to, like, get married and have puppies and live happily ever after in a cabin on the ocean or something, I don't know. That's how amazing you were."

Teddy felt his face heat. "Um, okay." He smiled to himself, suddenly missing James even more than before. He always did love riling Al up. "So what's that got to do with–"

"–and he shows me this girlie bracelet he got you," continued Al, cutting Teddy off with a glare. "Like I'd care. And then he starts telling me how brilliant sucking cock is, and how I should try it someday, and how if..." Al scrunched his face up. " _Bah_ ," he wailed at last, releasing the tension and shooting drops of spittle all over the table.

"He does that to you all the time," argued Teddy. "And he didn't give me any..." He thought back. He would have remembered a gift like that, wouldn't he? God, had he been neglecting James so much that he didn't even notice?

"Sent it in the post, like it's 1842," snorted Al. "Thought it'd be funny to make you explain it to Bill when you opened it, like he'd sent you a dildo or something. It's not like I know how his mind works. He's got to be gay all over the place, apparently. Make sure everyone else is as uncomfortable as possible. Fucker."

" _Albus_." Victoire had her real queen bitch voice on now, and Teddy was grateful to her for it. But she softened it immediately, leaning forward with a warm gaze at Al across the table. "He's not gay just so that he can make you uncomfortable. You know that."

Al dropped his gaze.

"And neither is your father," she added quietly.

Al's jaw tensed, but he didn't come out with a new outburst, so that was something. "Well," he managed after a moment, "could've fooled me."

But there was no bite behind it, and he slumped back in his chair.

They were all quiet for a moment before Teddy took a deep breath and pulled out a chair, dropping into it. "Hey."

Al glanced up, his mouth turned down.

"We didn't plan for this," he began, "and we didn't set out to make you uncomfortable in your own family. But I'm _really_ in love with your brother, okay, and I'd do anything for him." He swallowed, forging ahead when Al still didn't speak. "And I really cocked something up with him this week, and, I mean, you're worried about him. That's completely understandable, and I'm glad you are, you know? I'm really glad. So, I promise you, I never wanted to hurt him, and I'm going to make it right, okay? And then, uh, he can stop listening to Sebastien Kont and your ears will stop bleeding, and then, you know. Life will go on."

Al's mouth turned up a bit at that, and he glanced sideways at Teddy. "All right," he said gruffly.

Silently, Victoire passed Teddy her cigarette with a sympathetic smile. He took it, sitting back in the chair with his legs spread and his eyes on the ceiling and took a long drag. A _bracelet_? When on earth had James sent him a bracelet by post, and why hadn't he mentioned it earlier, and Teddy opened the bleeding post every day at work; how could he have missed a –

Oh.

His eyes darted across the ceiling, back and forth, as his brain tried to keep up. He jumped up and strode to the living room to retrieve his bag, bringing it back to the kitchen and pulling out the pouch of post from two weeks ago.

Ah, so that was where the Tithers file had gone. Christ.

"What are you doing?" Victoire was sneaking a glance over his shoulder as he spread the things on the table.

"Hold on. Thinking."

Al snorted. "Don't want to interrupt that."

He spread the items out on the table, pushing aside the requests for donations from the society for half-giant orphans and the tools – which, when unwrapped, amounted to a Remembrall; an eyeball of, oh, ew, there was no identifying that species; and a used tissue – that Mrs Tithers was apparently using to determine the status of her husband's corpse. Or to conduct experiments on a stray tablecloth. He frowned, picking through the wreckage for that one little box –

Ah.

He pulled it out from under a pamphlet for a new Goblin restaurant up Diagon and turned it over in his hands. He unwrapped it quickly and clicked the top open. Inside sat a thick pewter wristband, studded with black onyx like Teddy wore in a line up his left ear. "Oh, James," he murmured, drawing his index finger over it. It was fantastic.

"Ooh, let me see." Victoire reached for it, and although he didn't want to give it up yet, Teddy was grateful to her for showing as much enthusiasm for it as he felt. "What's _girlie_ about it?" she asked Al, the casualness of her tone undercut with a fierce challenge.

Al shot her a dirty look. "I don't know. It just is."

"Well, I think it's very manly," she proclaimed, winking at Teddy. "And hot."

"I'm aware of your thoughts on the matter," he told her under his breath, pushing down a grin. Okay, so he could definitely make things right with James now. He suddenly remembered James's tight jaw and lowered eyes as he ran his hands down Teddy's arms and wrists the past few weeks, clearly wondering why Teddy hadn't been wearing the thing. He sighed, rubbing his eyes. James was open and honest about every bloody thing in his life, but when it actually _mattered_ to just come out and ask someone a bloody question, he chose that moment to clam up and hide behind insecurities? Christ.

When he opened his eyes again, ready to go find James and fix this whole sodding mess, both Al and Victoire were staring at opposite walls of the kitchen, mouths open.

Oh... no.

A clear feeling of dread overtaking him, Teddy slowly turned around.

>   
> _VICTOIRE WEASLEY PICTURES HER EX WITH HER COUSIN EVERY TIME SHE MASTURBATES_   
> 

Teddy blinked. " _Shit_ ," he muttered, trying not to dwell on the content of the damn message but rather the _place_. "Not here, too."

"You can see it? What _is_ that? I _don't_ , you know." Her voice began to rise. "I mean, I used to, since you never let me watch for real, but I haven't since Roger had Stefan put his–"

"It's a case your dad and I are working on," Teddy said quickly, cutting her off. He rubbed his eyes. "Messages follow me. No, Al can't see it. Yes, I can. No, I still don't know why." He paused, glancing up. " _Stefan_ , seriously?"

She smiled.

He let out a low whistle. "Well done, Roger." With a slowly building sense of dread, it occurred to him that Al was being entirely too quiet. He turned around to find Al gaping in horror at the opposite wall.

>   
> _ALBUS POTTER IS A VIRGIN_   
> 

Teddy swallowed a laugh. He could have guessed that one easily enough. "Ah, that's... perfectly normal, mate," he assured Al. "She'll never know that one."

"Oh, fantastic," muttered Al, slumping in his chair. "She won't, but _you_ do, and that's– I mean, it's _not_ normal, it's just that Campbell doesn't think she wants... just... oh, fuck off."

Teddy sighed, ignoring him. What were the messages doing _here_? He was so frustrated with this stupid case, he wanted to punch his fist through the table. They were childish, really, the kind of taunts James _had_ found on his Quidditch locker at school – exactly like Teddy had told Scorpius that first time.

He started rummaging through the pile on the table again, his mind whirling. He'd been carrying this bloody pouch around in his bag for weeks. It had to be something in there. The Remembrall? He held it up and squinted, silently reviewing its magical properties. No, that didn't fit. Goblins? A new gym? The sodding tissue? Fuck.

Victoire and Al had fallen silent as they watched him, darting glances at each other when they thought he wasn't looking.

The _button_. Christ, of course! He tore through his bag for Burrett's fucking button. It had arrived the same day as all this junk, hadn't it? He tried to remember. That had to be it. Burrett had charmed the bloody thing to embarrass the people around it – the people around _Teddy_. Sadistic fucking arsehole. He'd have Bill string him up for harassment for this one at last, oh yes he would. Except the button wasn't in the bag. He clenched his jaw, scraping his fingers against the bottom to make sure. Maybe some trace of it had remained? Teddy had pinned it to his shirt for a few seconds, after all...

His mind raced as he tried to put the pieces together.

"All right?" ventured Victoire.

"Yeah." He scrubbed at his face, grabbed the bracelet back from Victoire and put it on, and then shoved the other objects back into the pouch. "Thanks for the beer. I have to get back to work. And hey, Al?"

Al glanced up warily.

"Thanks for this." He held his wrist up. "I honestly didn't get it, so I'm going to go make it right with him, okay?"

Al grumbled and waved his hand, and Teddy leaned down closer to his ear.

"And as for Campbell – respect her boundaries. You really like her, don't you?"

He pressed his lips together, but the flush that spread over his face betrayed him. He tried to shrug it off. "She's got nice tits."

"Don't be an arse," said Teddy, taking a swipe at his shoulder. "Treat her well, and who knows? Maybe you'll get somewhere. And then you can tell James all about it in gory detail until he's about to throw up and he begs you to stop."

A slow grin overtook Al's face.

With a wave at Victoire, Teddy dashed for the Floo.

***

He arrived back at the office and immediately grabbed his mirror out of his pocket, rubbing the corner of his shirt over its surface before giving it a frantic tap.

"James," he said, trying to keep his voice down. " _James_. Come on, please answer. I've really got to talk to you."

Nothing. Bollocks.

He threw it on his desk with a few muttered oaths and set about his next task. Hauling the pouch out of his shoulder bag again, he dumped the contents on the desk and began sorting them. "Fuck. Still not here. Where the fuck did I–"

"Quit talking to yourself." Bill strolled out of his office and picked up the coffee pot, waving his wand at it to pour a fresh cup.

Teddy's head snapped up. "It's Burrett's fucking _button_ ," he said, unable to contain his excitement. "Except I can't find it now. Did you keep it?" He started rooting through his bag again. After a few moments, with Bill's footsteps retreating and then coming back, the button landed on the desk in front of him, its clasp rattling against the wood. The angry red line through it was still charmed away, but the two kissing male silhouettes remained. Teddy raised his head again to find Bill nodding at him.

"Yeah, it was in my desk. That lead Malfoy's kid gave you about Burrett never went anywhere, so I was going to bring it over to Lily, see if she wanted to practice some spells on it. Give them dicks for ears or something, I don't know."

Teddy gave him a look, and Bill grinned.

"What? It'd be funny. Ginny'd do her nut."

"Let me see it," muttered Teddy, ignoring him and grabbing the button. He turned it around in his hands, examining it from all angles. It still seemed so simple, but they couldn't put anything past Burrett, the fucker. "This is _it_ , Bill. I know it is. _This_ is what's causing the curse on the Malfoys." He left off the part about how it wasn't just to do with the Malfoys anymore, nor even just their walls. "Just have to prove it."

When he glanced up again, Bill was giving him a curious look. His face darkened as he appraised Teddy, but he kept quiet. "All right," was all he said. "Show me how."

"Right, well, that's the problem." He aimed his wand at it and performed another series of diagnostic spells. Still nothing. "Bloody fucking..." He already knew this wasn't it. Dammit. If Bill had had the button all along, it couldn't have done anything at Victoire's, never mind the Manor, unless –

Bill cleared his throat, glaring at Teddy.

"Hold on." He thought for another moment, then went over to the storeroom and brought back a few phials. After filling the testing dishes and dropping the button in, he stepped back to watch for a reaction.

Still nothing.

"All right, Christ," Bill sputtered, wincing. "You're good at what you do, kid, or I wouldn't have kept you around this long, but this is torture. Exactly how long were you planning to spend diagnosing something with no more magic in it than a bottle cap?"

Grimacing, Teddy glared at the button, poking it with his wand through the fluid. Stupid piece of shit.

"Also–" Bill folded his arms over his chest, his voice rising – "are you actually going to keep hammering at that _button_ as the cause of the Malfoy case, when you're standing there with an entire Mondreau sphere clamped around your arm?"

"I– what?" Teddy looked down.

Bill pointed at the bracelet from James. "Take it off!"

Eyes wide, Teddy scrambled to obey. Bill didn't use that voice very often. The bracelet fell to this desk with a soft _thud_.

"That thing would do Gellert Grindelwald himself proud." Bill's voice softened a bit. "Well, maybe more in his hippie couture phase, not the world domination one. But still. Have you been wearing that thing when you were over at the Malfoys'?"

"What? No. It was... in my bag." Ah. Teddy stared at it for another moment before raising his head again. When he did, the wall on the far side of the office melted into familiar blue block letters.

>   
> _BILL WEASLEY WISHES HIS APPRENTICE WAS JUST A LITTLE BIT CLEVERER_   
> 

He sighed.

Bill held his hand out. "Give me the damn sphere," he muttered. "I have to say," he added, "I'm glad to know that not only do we not have any sexual history, but as much as I usually like you, there aren't any hidden desires there, either."

Teddy paused. "That's why your messages are so boring?"

"Yep."

He passed Bill the bracelet, considering. "So, it's just something the person's thinking about at the time?"

"Little bit. It's more to do with general secrets, though. It's like Veritaserum, in a way, but instead of making you speak the truth, it just broadcasts everything you're hiding on the walls. Christ, I should have thought of this," he muttered to himself, turning the thing over in his hands. "Haven't seen one in years, and then it was only in storage down in Egypt. Goblins used to use them in the wars of the sixteenth century. Get close enough to the enemy wearing one of these, and you've got his best battle plans laid out right in front of you in three seconds."

Teddy thought about that. "But I don't have any battle plans."

Bill glanced up and gave him a pointed look. "No, you don't. Because battle plans aren't your biggest secret, hm?"

"Ah. Well..."

But Bill wasn't interested in Teddy's defences, thank God. Bill pointed his wand and turned the bracelet – sphere, whatever – upside down, muttering a stream of Arabic at it. It began to tremble slightly in his hand before rising into the air and hovering between them. Tilting his head to the side, he swirled his wand and performed another few spells, each one punctuated by a pulsing glow from the sphere. When he was done, the thing dulled to a darkened silver and fell back into Bill's hand.

He handed it back to Teddy.

"There. That should neutralise it."

"It was supposed to be a gift from James. Christ, I haven't even thanked him for it yet." He looked sadly down at the half-charred item in his hand. Bill's counter-spell seemed to have worked, though; the message casting aspersions on Teddy's intelligence had vanished from the wall.

"It was nicely trussed up," said Bill with a lopsided grin. "Meant to look more like jewellry than a gauntlet. Very pretty."

Teddy glared at him.

"Find out where he got it, and we'll start there. It's definitely not something that should just be floating around for the general public to pick up."

The unfamiliar writing on the address of the package flickered through Teddy's mind again. He set the remains of the bracelet down on the desk and sorted through the debris again for the box. When he found it, he gave it a good, long look, trying to place it. When it dawned on him, he glanced up and grinned at Bill.

"What?"

" _Chester's_."

Bill squinted at him. "The sex shop?"

" _That's_ where I've seen the writing before," said Teddy excitedly, moving his fingers over the box. When he looked up again, Bill was smirking at him. "Well. I mean, I've heard about the place, that's all." He coughed.

"Right, of course."

He narrowed his eyes at Bill. "Don't tell me that wife of yours isn't a regular," he ventured, and Bill barked a laugh.

"Watch it," he said, pointing his finger at Teddy, but then he grabbed his cloak. "Come on, then. Let's go see what Chester's got to say for himself about harbouring unsafe artefacts."

"Uh, okay. So, not wanting to wear it was one thing, but did you have to _burn_ it?"

Teddy and Bill looked over at the door to see James standing just inside, his hands shoved in his pockets and a very uncharacteristic frown on his face. He was pale and couldn't have looked more forlorn if he'd tried. He gestured at the desk.

"Hey, kid." Bill glanced between James and Teddy, the room deadened by the awkward pause.

Teddy could almost see the wheels turning in his head. Sexual secrets about Malfoys... Teddy involved... James looking like he'd been run over by a hippogriff...

"I'll just, uh..." Bill hiked his thumb over his shoulder, but not before casting one more concerned look at his nephew. "All right?" he said softly.

James shrugged, not saying anything.

Great. Fabulous. Now Teddy was about to have the weight of the Weasley family defence shields bearing down on him. Christ, it wasn't just Molly; the entire lot of them could be more vicious than a mother grizzly bear protecting her cubs.

"Do you want me to stay?" Bill asked James.

Looking down at the floor, James shook his head. "Can I just talk to Teddy for a second?"

Bill looked unconvinced that Teddy wouldn't kill a couple of puppies in front of James if Bill left them alone. "Lupin," he said warningly.

" _Bill_ ," said Teddy, squaring his shoulders and trying to be an adult. "Come on. It's all right; it's between us. Can you just go to Chester's and check things out?"

After a pause, Bill nodded. "Fine. But be careful with that thing, even after it's been neutralised." He pointed at the bracelet. "Use your head, yeah? It's not just about secrets and desires." He pressed a bit too much emphasis on the words, glancing at James, and Teddy cringed. "It's probably been showing something to do with _fears_ , too." He gave Teddy a look before heading for the door.

Teddy glanced down at it, his brows furrowed.

"I'm leaving, and I'm not coming back till tomorrow," added Bill, a bit too loudly, "but that doesn't mean you can fuck in my office, all right?"

That earned a small smile from James, although he tried to mask it. "No chance of that," he muttered.

Bill clapped James on the back and gave his shoulder a squeeze before leaving and closing the door behind him.

When he was gone, Teddy stood awkwardly for a few seconds before deciding that they would never resolve this if he didn't start confronting his secrets, and his fears. " _James_ ," he whispered, striding towards him.

James looked up, his face open with hope before he had a chance to clamp down on his emotions again. "Fuck off," he murmured, but Teddy kept striding until he reached him, and when he did, he ignored James's yelp of surprise and closed his hands over either side of his jaw, hauling him in for a bruising kiss.

James gasped against his mouth, making a desperate little noise and immediately opening for Teddy just as he always did, letting himself sink into the kiss for a moment before grasping Teddy's arms and pushing him back, his fingers still curled around Teddy's biceps.

"What?" he panted. "No." But his face was crumpled and he looked too desolate to put any bite behind the words.

Teddy stayed in James's personal space, crowding against him even as he glanced over his shoulder and nodded at the destroyed sphere on the desk. "Why didn't you tell me?"

James blinked at it. "I– you didn't want it. I didn't–"

" _Why_ would I not want it?" snapped Teddy, harsher than he'd meant to, but Christ, when had James ever shown such insecurity about their relationship? "I didn't _have_ it, you idiot," he added, softening his voice and bringing his forehead closer to James's. "Got lost in the bloody post. And you saw I didn't have it but you never asked, you just assumed I'd, what, binned it?"

James opened his mouth to speak, colour blossoming over his cheeks, but then he closed it again. "It made sense at the time," he muttered. "I don't know. I thought–" He shook his head, running a hand over his face.

"You thought I was chucking you for Malfoy," said Teddy quietly. James's gaze fell to the floor even as his jaw clenched, and Teddy immediately pressed forward, framing James's face in his hands again and forcing his gaze. " _Never_ ," he breathed, his mouth inches from James's. "I love you, all right? Always. No matter what else happens with him."

But James shook his head again, pushing Teddy back. "No matter if you fuck around with him and don't tell me?" He wiped his mouth, looking away.

Teddy wouldn't let himself be pushed away. He couldn't. If he stopped touching James now, that might actually be it, that might do it, James might never let him in again. He'd never fucked up quite this badly before. He clawed at James's shirt, his fingers bunching in the fabric. "I'm _sorry_ ," he whispered fiercely, his face still as close to James's as James would allow. "I am so fucking sorry. I'm a complete dick. He wanted me to call you on the mirror, have you watch. It was going to be just like you and him in the Room of Requirement, and, Christ, have I ever told you how hard I came that day after watching you two? I was on my bloody lunch break, and I had to lock myself in the loo like a pervert and then try to Charm the come off my robes before Bill got back. _James_ , Jesus."

James still wasn't looking at him, though his jaw twitched. Teddy kept going.

"It was just supposed to be like that. I saw him at that bloody party and– I'm _sorry_ ," he said again. "I never meant to do anything with him. I caught him wanking over me in the loo, for God's sake, just as pathetic as you'd think – wanking over _us_ , really, both of us – and we tried to call you but you didn't answer, and you–" Teddy pressed even closer, his cheek next to James's and his words harsh, he hoped, in James's ear – "you _always_ answer, always, and I was angry with you, and Christ, you'd got off with Malfoy yourself but then judged _me_ for wanting to? I couldn't– I just–" He sighed, his head dropping to James's shoulder and his fingers grasping at the collar of his shirt.

Slowly, James's arms came up and wrapped around his back, tentatively smoothing over him.

Teddy took in a shuddering breath, lifting his head again. "He turns me on," he began slowly, his voice shaking, "like nothing I've ever felt before, not since I fell for you."

James was trembling underneath him, his hands moving up Teddy's shoulders and neck to tilt his face up. James kissed him, sloppy and desperate, a small sound rising up in the back of his throat. "I know," he murmured, his forehead heavy against Teddy's. "Fucking Malfoy. I _know_. I can't stop thinking about him, but I hate that you can't, either, but I _want_ you to want him as much as I do, and I can't, I don't know how to do this." He pulled back, meeting Teddy's gaze at last. "You _can't_ do that again," he said, his voice anguished. "You can't hide things from me about him."

"I know. I know. I'm sorry."

"Just, if I _knew_ , then, maybe. If I'm at the shop, and he wants to suck your cock, and then you _tell me_ , then, I don't know, that's different. That–" he breathed deeply, his eyes fluttering closed. "That's hot as fuck," he whispered. "But I want to know _everything_."

"God. Yeah." Teddy held him close, his mouth moving over the side of James's face.

"But if you don't tell me, then it's a secret, and I'm not part of it, and it's– it's– not the same."

Teddy nodded against James's hair. "Yeah. I know. That's it, right? That's exactly it." He made himself pull back to look in James's eyes. "I'm sorry." He leaned in tentatively, waiting for James's acquiescence, touching his lips to James's. James was still at first, neither deepening the kiss nor pulling back, so Teddy went slow. His fingertips slid up to James's cheek, and his mouth moved softly over James's, delicate and intimate. James began to tremble against him again, breathing shallowly until his lips parted in a soft gasp, and he pulled Teddy closer.

"God," he choked, opening to Teddy at last. Teddy shoved one hand in James's hair, his thumb cradling James's cheek and his lips desperate to take as much as James could give. "Love you so fucking much," James whispered fiercely against Teddy's mouth. "Don't ever fuck with me like this again."

Teddy groaned. "I won't. I promise." And then James's tongue was pressing against his, insistent and bold like he was staking a claim, and Teddy melted against him at the ferocity of it.

When they separated, James glanced over at the desk again. "So, do you want to tell me why you and Uncle Bill had to incinerate my incredibly thoughtful, romantic gift? I thought it'd look good on you."

Teddy groaned, lifting himself off James and rubbing his forehead. "It did. But it's not just jewellry. Bill's gone off to interrogate Chester about trading in rare and dangerous artefacts."

James's eyes widened.

"That case we've been working on with the Malfoys?" continued Teddy. "This was causing it all."

"Seriously?" Teddy could see James's mind at work, his eyes darting around the desk as he seemed to be piecing it together. Teddy had never told him this, but James probably did have more of a mind for curse breaking than anyone in his family had given him credit for... even though he _had_ just bought a sixteenth-century weapon full of Dark magic because it looked pretty. " _That_ thing was trying to force Malfoy to come out to his dad?"

Teddy blinked. "He told you about that?"

"Sure. He was pretty upset there for awhile. And he was pissed off that you weren't fixing it fast enough." James laughed but then moved close to Teddy again, sliding his fingers up over Teddy's arms. His voice was tentative. "He told me you had a secret, too, up on the wall. But he didn't know what it was, other than that it was something about the three of us."

Teddy pressed his lips together. Yeah. That was one way to put it. At his expression, though, James took a step back, dropping his gaze.

"Oh. Okay. I... don't want to know, do I?"

Teddy gripped his shoulder and pulled him close. "Yeah, you do. You get to know everything, remember?" Teddy took a deep breath, wrapping his arms around James. "Your lovely piece of jewellry," he began, only half mocking, "read my fantasy somehow."

James swallowed, his fingers inching up the back of Teddy's neck. "The same one?" he whispered.

"Yeah." Suddenly it was too hot in the room, James's chest pressed tight against Teddy's and James's breath light and apprehensive at Teddy's neck. "It's always the same one. You already know it, baby."

James moaned, biting down softly over Teddy's collarbone.

"I want to be inside him," breathed Teddy. "I want you there, and I want you to watch, and help, and hold him down, and get him ready... I don't know. But then I want to watch him take my cock, watch us all get off on how much _he_ wants it."

"He does," murmured James. "God, he won't stop talking about it."

"Yeah?"

James pulled back a bit, the corners of his mouth turning up. "Yeah. He's a total slag for you, probably because you keep saying no."

Teddy closed his eyes.

He felt the tip of James's nose touch his, James's fingers soft in his hair. "How much longer can you keep saying no?"

With a grunt, Teddy pushed him back against the wall, framing his face and kissing him fiercely.

"Oh, God," moaned James. "How are you such a prick and still so hot?" He clawed at Teddy's trousers until he ripped them open, his hard dick spilling out into James's hands. Wasting no time, James unbuckled his own and hauled his cock out, pressing it against Teddy's, rough and hot, closing his damp fist as far around them as it would go.

"Fuck," Teddy whimpered, sucking a path down James's neck.

"Want to see that," breathed James, his hand jerking them so rough it almost hurt. "Want you to fuck him till he can't walk. Want you to come all over him and inside him and make him suck my cock and then– then–" he swallowed another moan – "fucking fall asleep with both of you and wake up and do it all again. Want to– want–" He came, thick and gorgeous over Teddy's prick, his mouth hot against Teddy's neck, and Jesus fuck.

"More," gasped Teddy, his own hand dropping to finish himself off, and it only took another few strokes. James's come slid over Teddy's dick and into his palm, and God, _yes_ , to all of it, to everything. " _James_ ," he choked out as he came, pressing James too hard against the wall with his fingers twisted painfully in the fabric of James's shirt.

"I know, I know. God. Come on, come all over me."

They stumbled to the floor, falling into a heap against one another until their breathing evened out. Teddy sought James's mouth, quiet and sure. His lips parted as he leaned into the kiss, James opening to him with a welcome gentleness after the frantic sex. When they parted, Teddy rested his forehead against James's and gave him a tiny smile.

"What?" James was flushed and gorgeous, his lips still wet and his cheek brushing Teddy's.

Teddy's grin deepened until he was laughing softly against James's mouth. "I guess we'd better go find him then, eh?"

***

The next stop was Malfoy Manor. Teddy told himself – and James – that he needed to check and make sure that by destroying the Mondreau sphere the messages on Draco's walls had also disappeared, but they both knew there was more to it than that.

When the door swung open and Draco glared down his nose at them, Teddy got the feeling he wasn't the only one thinking there was more to it than that.

"Lupin," said Draco coolly, nodding at them. "Pot–" He caught himself. " _James_."

James, bless him, didn't miss a beat in returning the awkward favour of embracing their newfound first-name basis, as Harry must have insisted. " _Draco_ ," he said cheerfully. "Mind if we come in?" He pushed past Draco at the door rather than waiting for the invitation.

"Not at all," muttered Draco, glaring at Teddy, who only shrugged.

"Scorpius around?" he tried to ask casually, but Draco narrowed his eyes.

"No."

Teddy held his gaze, until Draco finally seemed to grow annoyed, looking away.

"He said he had somewhere to be, and off he went." Draco twirled his hand in the direction of the vast gardens. "He's a teenager, Lupin. I'm the last person he wants knowing his detailed schedule."

"Listen," he said to Draco, "I think we've solved the case. Come with me to check that corridor. If it's still cursed, you should get another message, right?"

Draco pressed his lips together. "I've had quite enough of you seeing those messages of mine," he muttered. Still, he let Teddy lead him down the offending corridor.

"Wait here a minute," he said to James, squeezing his arm on the way past. There was something else he needed to say to Draco.

When they arrived at the place where the messages had begun, Draco finally took his hand away from his face and glanced around. Then he shot an expectant look at Teddy.

"Gone," Teddy proclaimed, his hands on his hips as he looked around with satisfaction. "Thank God."

It was several long moments before Draco let down his guard a bit more, but after scanning the walls himself, he finally slouched against one, arms folded across his chest. "Bloody hell," he muttered. "Don't _ever_ let that happen again."

"I didn't _let_ it happen," said Teddy, annoyed.

"Well, you certainly didn't get rid of it as quickly as you and Weasley promised you would. I'm only paying you half."

"The invoice is already in the post," Teddy shot back. "And _you_ certainly haven't given even a second's thought to the reason that particular message was targeting you, have you?"

Draco looked at him.

" _Tell him_."

Draco's look grew wild. "Scorpius? Are you mad?"

" _Harry_ , you idiot."

He recoiled. "Absolutely not."

"Draco, I can't believe I'm saying anything even remotely close to this, but I am, okay?" Teddy gave Draco a significant look. "If that's your biggest secret, and it must be, or the magic wouldn't have picked up on it, then you have to fucking tell him. You don't have to tell him the details," he added when Draco looked fit to interrupt, "and you don't even have to admit it was fantastic. Hey, you can tell him I was terrible, I don't care. But you have to tell him."

Draco opened his mouth to respond, but he held Teddy's gaze and slowly closed it. He regarded Teddy for a long moment. "Fantastic, hm?" he murmured.

Teddy grinned. "I said _don't_ tell him that part."

Finally, a small smile tugged at Draco's mouth. "You are an ongoing pain in the arse, has anyone ever told you that?"

"Let's see. My boss, my godfather, my boyfriend, my brother-in-law, my ex-girlfriend... yeah. I've been told."

Draco sighed, regarding Teddy carefully. "He's gone to find Potter," he said at last. "James, I mean." The name still made him wince. Teddy bit down on a laugh and wondered how many shags it had taken before Draco was able to force himself to call Harry by his first name. Then Draco's words sunk in.

"Where?"

Draco waved his hand. "Ginny's, I imagine. I don't know." His eyes narrowed. "And he was upset, although trying to hide it. So if you're only going to make it worse, I'd rather you buggered off and left him in peace."

"But if you think I can help...?"

"Then go off and bloody help. He certainly won't talk to me about whatever's bothering him, so if he needs a pair of shirt-lifting Gryffindors to get the job done, then, off you go."

Teddy reached his hand out tentatively and squeezed Draco's arm. "I can find out what's bothering him," he promised, hoping the baldness of the lie wasn't apparent in his voice, but once more, Draco only huffed a laugh, beginning to stride back down the corridor towards the foyer.

"What's _bothering_ him is that he's gay as a maypole, Lupin, but seems to think this is some dark secret to be kept from me." He shook his head. "If you can get to the bottom of that logic puzzle, be my guest. No one has ever yet accused a Malfoy of rational thought."

"Hey." Before Teddy could respond, they reached the foyer and James gave Teddy a bright smile.

"Hey. So, Scorpius has gone to your mum's to look for you."

The smile faded. "My... mum's?" He looked over at Draco, then back at Teddy. "Ah, okay then. That's not a totally terrifying thought or anything."

"Then let's go get him," sighed Teddy, rubbing his eyes. This was getting more than a little ridiculous.

"Potter," said Draco, wincing once more. " _James_. Would you– that is, a word, please?"

James looked at Teddy, who shrugged.

"Uh."

"I'll go on ahead," said Teddy. "Meet you there." Pushing down a laugh, he gave Draco a wink and strode out to the grounds, hoping against hope that Ginny was working late.

***

Teddy landed in front of the Potters' house with a _crack_ just in time to see what looked to be the fifteenth ripe tomato hit the side of it.

"Get out here, you miserable prat!" hollered Scorpius at the top of his lungs. Another tomato hit the front door. Teddy was striding up the lawn when the door burst open and Ginny appeared, looking murderous.

He couldn't really be faulted, he decided, for diving into the nearest bush as quickly as possible.

"You're Malfoy's child," she ground out, looking him up and down. Scorpius dropped the hand still holding a tomato, wisely having decided to cease his assault for the time being.

"Uh."

Teddy winced.

Ginny stepped outside and closed the dripping door behind her. "Do you mind telling me what you think you're doing?" To outside observers, Teddy mused, she might even sound calm about it. Teddy, James and Al (and Lily to a lesser extent, although she was always less likely to be found strewn with mud and hanging from the roof than the boys were) knew that voice anywhere, though, and it always preceded a punishment like scrubbing her broomstick with a nail polish brush. He trembled.

Scorpius swallowed, jutting his chin out. "Excuse me, Mrs Potter, but I was looking for James."

Ginny blinked at the insane politeness. So did Teddy.

"I see." Ginny folded her arms across her chest, glancing back at her house. "And did this method help you find him?"

"Er- no, ma'am."

"Shocking."

Scorpius pressed his lips together, deflating, and Teddy felt a wave of pity for him. Christ, but this whole thing was cocked up. And now he wouldn't put it past Malfoy to start crying and tell _Ginny_ of all people the entire bloody story. He waited in the bushes a bit longer.

"Could you please, um, tell him I would like to speak with him?" Scorpius dropped the last tomato in his hand, and it fell to the ground with a dull thud. Ginny watched it, then snapped her eyes back to Scorpius.

"He's not home," she said carefully, still scrutinising him. Scorpius's shoulders sagged. Christ. Teddy wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around him and tell him it would all be all right, that they'd all figure this out, the three of them, but he could barely tell himself that, never mind Scorpius. With a sigh, Ginny pulled her wand out and waved it over the front of her house, Vanishing the mess. Then she stepped forward, lowering herself onto the top step of the porch and running her hands over her face and up through her long hair. She quickly knotted it at the nape of her neck, and then she beckoned Scorpius to sit next to her. "Come on, then," she added wearily when he didn't move. "I won't hex you."

Slowly, he shuffled forward and sat a few steps below her, still gazing at the ground. "Sorry," he muttered.

"I should think so. Now–" she sighed again, as though bracing herself – "what has my son done to you?"

Teddy grinned. It wasn't funny, not really, and he knew that James and Ginny still needed to repair the relationship that had been so strained since James had come out, but Teddy was old and wise enough to have developed a slight bit of sympathy for Ginny. She wasn't handling things well, that was for certain, but on the other hand, James as a teenager _had_ been a bit of a terror for any parent. The grin faded when Scorpius held his silence, the look on his face indicating that he might just tell her the truth. Jesus fucking Christ.

"Nothing, ma'am. I just–" he swallowed. "I was just angry with him for something."

She nodded. "All right." She eyed him. "I didn't know you two knew each other."

To his credit, Scorpius's face remained neutral. "We don't," he muttered. "Not really."

Teddy's heart clenched. Oh, Malfoy, you stupid tit. Did he really not know how James felt? How Teddy felt?

"It's just," continued Scorpius, "we were supposed to meet, but he didn't show up. So I, uh–" he gestured towards the house – "got upset. Sorry," he repeated, puffing out his cheeks and exhaling, looking miserable.

Ginny started to laugh. "Well, that's hardly grounds for– oh. _Oh_." Her eyes widened, and her face quickly fell. "You–" Teddy watched a series of emotions flash across her face. He held his breath. "You had a date?" she whispered.

It was Scorpius's turn to look shocked. "Oh! I– no. Not really. Not– I mean." He gulped. "Don't tell him I said that. It's not–" He sighed, leaning over with his head in his hands. "I know he's with Teddy," he murmured, so quietly Teddy almost couldn't hear. "I know I'm not the one he–" He stopped himself and groaned, pressing the heels of his hands to his eyes. " _Sorry_ , God, I didn't mean to say that to you. I'm really sorry about the tomatoes. They seemed like a really good idea. I don't know."

"I– okay, sweetheart. It's– it's okay." Ginny looked a bit green, but Teddy had to hand it to her. She wasn't coping too badly with the world's most awkward situation, what with advising her ex-husband's lover's son about his crush on her own. "He's very charming, isn't he?" She gave him a sympathetic smile.

Scorpius raised his head in surprise. "Oh. God. Yeah." He swallowed a laugh. "That he is."

"I think he's rather happy with Teddy, though." She pressed her lips together after forcing the words out, and Teddy nearly fell over from his crouch behind the bushes in shock. "I mean, I don't know much about it. He– doesn't really tell me much about it, but it's been a few years, and they still seem–" she twirled her hand – "happy. It seems. So, I'm sorry, love, if he's been leading you on, but–" She sighed again, rubbing her eyes.

"Oh. No. He hasn't. It's okay. I mean, he has, but I let him, because he's just, he's a bit brilliant, isn't he?" Scorpius's face took on a faraway look, his eyes gentle. "And so's Teddy. So they're happy, yeah. I just thought maybe– okay. No. Clearly not. But. Um." He glanced at Ginny. "Oh my God, I can't believe I just said any of that." Panic seemed to overtake him. "Don't tell anyone, okay?" He covered his face with his hands again. "My father would kill me."

Ginny regarded him quietly for a long moment. "It's Scorpius, right?" she said gently. He nodded. "Honey, your dad can't exactly pass judgement. You understand that, right?" To her credit, she kept the twitch in her jaw from leaping completely off her face. Teddy felt a surge of warmth for her.

He snorted. "Yeah. I know. But, he'd still be– I don't know. Disappointed."

"Well, he wouldn't be a Malfoy if he had roses and butterflies coming out of his ears at all turns," she deadpanned. "Let's be honest: your dad's a complete arse."

Scorpius's lips curved up ever so slightly.

She sighed again, one hand coming up to rest on Scorpius's head. She stroked his hair, and like a cat starved for affection, Scorpius leaned against her knee and closed his eyes. "Where's your mum, sweetheart? Have you told her any of this?"

Scorpius's face shuttered. "France. I don't know. Italy. She sends postcards."

"Ah." Ginny frowned. "Still, she might like to know." She gazed off over the grass. "Mothers like to know things," she added. "Even the things that are difficult."

Scorpius stiffened. "Shouldn't be that difficult," he said quietly. Teddy held his breath as Scorpius pulled away from Ginny, looking up at her. "That's what James always told me, you know. It should be the easiest thing in the world, when you want what you want and you get to have what you want, and just, sod the universe if they don't like it."

After looking startled for a moment, Ginny's face softened into a small smile. "That sounds like James."

Teddy heard a _crack_ in the vicinity, but before he could turn, a body dropped to the bushes beside him, rolling and flattening itself. Ginny and Scorpius looked up briefly but, seeing nothing, turned away again.

"What the everloving _shit_ is he doing?" James's voice hissed in Teddy's ear.

Teddy clamped his hand over James's mouth. "Shh. He's coming out to your bloody mother, that's what he's doing."

James's jaw dropped and he did everything he could to keep from flapping his hands and shrieking. _What_? _What?_ he mouthed instead, and Teddy had to push down a laugh at the panic on James's face.

"Shh. Just listen."

"But then," Ginny continued quietly, "James has never had any trouble going after exactly what he wanted in life, and getting it. Gets that from his father, I imagine." She stopped stroking Scorpius's hair and just rested her hand on his shoulder. "Something tells me it's not quite like that for you."

Scorpius snorted. "Oh, yes, anything I want in life, it's all mine." He started counting off on his fingers. "As long as it doesn't cause publicity to the family, embarrass the family, lose the family money, involve the family in Dark Arts, oh and did I mention, embarrass the family?" He sighed. "Yet no one seems to blink an eye that my mother is regularly photographed on Mediterranean beaches with nude Quidditch players, or that my father has decided to invite the _Daily Prophet_ in while heplays cowboy and the arse bandit with the most famous wizard in– oh." He squeezed his eyes shut. "Uh. Sorry."

Ginny lifted her hand away, smoothing both palms down her thighs.

"Oh my God." Beside Teddy, James was shaking with laughter and clutching at Teddy's shirt, his face buried in Teddy's shoulder. "God, Malfoy, shut _up_. What the fuck is wrong with him?"

"Shh, stop it. You're shaking the bushes. He's starved for parenting or something, I don't know. God, I didn't have a mother either, but I didn't go whinge about my problems to every middle-aged woman I met." James wouldn't stop laughing, but even as Teddy smiled back at him, he felt a jolt of sympathy for Scorpius. It was like he'd always been so guarded, so afraid of offending someone or bringing attention to his family, or disappointing his father and grandfather, that now that the cat was starting to claw at the bag, he was just going to plaster every passing emotion he might be even _considering_ all over his sleeve. Teddy's heart warmed as he watched and listened, falling a little bit more in love with the kid with every embarrassing word out of his mouth.

James stopped laughing eventually, slowing to the occasional silent hiccup, and when Teddy glanced at him, he too had a warm smile on his face as he watched his mother and Scorpius from between the leaves. "He's a bit pathetic, isn't he?" whispered James. Teddy swallowed a laugh.

"That's an understatement."

A soppy smile overtook James's face as he gazed at Scorpius, shaking his head a bit. "It's just, he's so bloody _cute_."

Grinning, Teddy knocked his shoulder against James's. He brought his index finger up and tilted James's chin towards him, brushing a kiss over his lips. "Yeah," he murmured against James's mouth. "He is. You should tell him that, you know. He thinks he's the odd man out."

James leaned in again for another kiss before pulling back and gazing at Teddy. "Is he?" he asked quietly.

Teddy sighed, considering. He'd never intended to fall in love with someone new, not when he'd been so happy with James, but there wasn't much point denying it anymore. That was exactly what had happened. The fact that James felt the same about Scorpius, and that Scorpius seemed very much to feel that way about both James and Teddy, too, was a thing of wonder to Teddy. They might as well confront it, and go from there. "No," he murmured, kissing James's temple. "He's not."

James smiled, warm and bright.

"What did Draco want, by the way?" Teddy asked, more to keep himself from ravishing James in his mother's hedge than because he really wanted to know.

James shook his head sadly. "'We should get to know each other better,'" he mimicked, and Teddy choked. "'Your father's likely told you all of this, but he's become, well, rather important to me. I'd like to spend time with you and your brother and sister.'"

"Wow."

"Yeah."

"Al sure won't like that idea."

"And Lils will just ask him embarrassing questions about gay sex."

"Yeah. I still haven't recovered from trying to explain rimming to her."

James hid his face in his hands. "Don't ever, _ever_ speak of Lily and rimming in the same sentence again."

"Fine, but you're the one who – _ow_. Christ."

A loud thud, a squawk, and Teddy was rubbing his elbow and gathering Malfoy limbs from where they were sprawled in a less than graceful arc around him. "What are you doing in the bushes, you idiots? A person could break their neck just trying to find their broom."

"Ah, Malfoy," said James. "Just who we were looking for."

"Newsflash, Potter. I don't sit around in hedges sipping tea or catching up on my correspondence." His face paled as he looked at them. "I– wait. So, how much of that did you hear, exactly?"

Teddy gave him a gentle smile. "Quite a bit of it."

Scorpius looked ready to bolt, his face ashen. "Right." He glanced at James from beneath his fringe. "So, uh, sorry about that. I might've, um–"

"–had a completely horrifying conversation with my mother about your cock worshipping tendencies in general, my cock in particular? No problem." He smirked. "Maybe if it happens to her a few more times, she'll get better at it."

"She wasn't bad," said Scorpius in a small voice, but then he cleared his throat and glanced between Teddy and James. "You've made up," he said suspiciously.

They nodded.

"Uh. So, okay." Scorpius's eyes flitted between them, his uncertainties written all over his face.

Teddy couldn't help it; the kid needed reassuring. He rolled over and propped himself up on his elbows, leaning in to brush a kiss over Scorpius's lips. When he glanced back at James to make sure, he found him only watching with warm curiosity. He nodded at Teddy, and Teddy turned to kiss Scorpius once more. It was light and simple, not nearly the fierce kiss he wanted to give, but when he pulled back again, Scorpius's eyes stayed closed and a warm flush coloured his cheeks. "We've solved the case," he murmured, his mouth still close to Scorpius's.

His eyes opened.

"Just stop keeping so many secrets, and you should be fine," said Teddy, smiling at him.

Scorpius's lips parted, but then he gave Teddy a small smile. "No more messages?"

Teddy shook his head.

Scorpius looked past him at James. "And you've made up."

James nodded.

Scorpius's gaze fell on Teddy's lips again. "But you just kissed me."

They both nodded.

When Scorpius couldn't seem to think of the next question that would make it all make sense, James laughed, kicking at him. "Come on, let's get the fuck out of here before my mother finds us. Because oh wait, here's a secret I'm not telling her just yet. Or anytime in the next millennium, come to think."

***

When they got back to Teddy's flat, he eased the door open and gestured them inside, setting the keys on the table near the door. When he turned around again, James had already gone to the refrigerator for a beer and was grinning at Scorpius while cracking it open. Scorpius, meanwhile, had already pulled his shirt over his head and was starting in on his belt buckle.

"Put your goddamn clothes on," muttered Teddy, running a hand over his face.

Scorpius turned to him, confusion on his face.

"And sit down," Teddy added, gesturing to both Scorpius and James. He caught them exchanging a shrug, and reluctantly, Scorpius eased his t-shirt back over his head and sat on the sofa, pouting. Teddy sat in the nearby armchair and James watched from his perch against the door to the kitchen. "No sex until we bloody well talk about all of this."

James and Scorpius blinked back at him, wide-eyed. James grinned into his bottle after a moment, taking a long swig. He wiped his mouth and flashed Teddy a smile. "What's up, boss?"

"Oh, shut up," Teddy shot back wearily. He kicked his legs up on the table and crossed them at the ankle, leaning back in the chair and gazing at the ceiling. "We can't keep this up."

There was a silence, and then Scorpius jumped to his feet. He strode for the door, head bowed. "Fine," he muttered. "No need to draw it out. Have a nice life."

"Malfoy!" called James, as Teddy closed his eyes and shook his head.

"Sit _down_ , you stupid arse," added Teddy. He didn't hear the door open, so he assumed Scorpius had hesitated.

"Sit the fuck down," repeated James. "You think we're going to chuck you after all this? I don't know what Lupin thinks is so serious all of a sudden, but hear him out, at least."

Teddy opened his eyes and gave James a gentle smile. He melted at the look, as usual, ducking his head down to his bottle again. Slowly, Scorpius shuffled back to the sofa and leaned over the back of it, his fists pressed to the upholstery.

"Fine," he muttered again. "What do you want, Lupin?"

"I want to shag your brains out, Malfoy," he said quietly, enjoying the sharp intake of breath across the room. "Every day, all day, every night, the whole thing." He glanced up. "And I want to shag James's brains out. And I'm pretty sure you two hardly mind shagging each other, either."

Scorpius's cheeks coloured, and he dropped his gaze to the floor, his chest heaving.

"And all of that has caused a big bloody mess over the past few weeks, hasn't it?"

James gave him a guilty smile but kept quiet.

"I won't be your third fiddle." Scorpius folded his arms over his chest, scowling. "Or wheel," he amended.

Teddy and James exchanged an amused look.

"Banana!" Scorpius squeezed his eyes shut. "Third– just, _you know_."

"Well, then, which one of us would you choose?"

Teddy's stomach churned. " _James_."

"I'm serious!" said James, but he gave Teddy a pointed look, and Teddy fell silent. Interesting approach, but maybe it would be worth it to know.

Scorpius's eyes darted between them, a miserable expression overtaking his features. He was quiet for a long moment. "Like I said before," he said at last, his jaw clenched. "Have a nice life. It's been great." His voice broke on the last word, and Teddy's heart broke with it a little bit. He headed for the door, but James was right on his heels.

" _Malfoy_." He crowded Scorpius against the door, his forehead lightly nudging Scorpius's neck. "The answer, you idiot. The honest answer."

"No." Scorpius tried to squirm away.

"Clearly, we already know what it is, or you wouldn't be pitching your drama queen snit and leaving, so just bloody say it, all right?"

Watching from the chair, Teddy had to wince a bit at James's methods, berating himself for the millionth time for ever getting involved with teenagers. Christ, he should have learned his lesson ages ago and spent his twenties in the beds of men twice his age who never pitched fits or suffered raging emotions and... would ensure his life were as boring as possible. He couldn't hide a small smile as he watched Scorpius begin to melt under the smooth slide of James's hands over his arms and shoulders.

"Say it," repeated James, his voice a whisper now. "Say it, you bastard. Tell us you can't choose."

Scorpius's forehead hit the door with a thud, his fingers scratching at it absently. He half-moaned, half-whinged, a low note of despair. "Of course I can't choose, you wanker. Both of you can just sod it." His voice rose. "Complete wankers, the pair of you, and I hate you both."

James laughed softly, nibbling at the back of Scorpius's neck. "No, you don't."

"Well, I will, starting now, because it's not as though I can actually _have_ you both, not for longer than a shag, it seems, so, bollocks. Just get your bloody mouth off me and let me leave." He turned his head away halfheartedly, but James's lips followed. He spun Scorpius around and found his mouth, kissing him breathless.

"Go sit down," murmured James, smiling against Scorpius's mouth, "and listen to Teddy, okay? God, you're a nightmare." But he nipped in for another kiss, lingering with Scorpius's bottom lip between his teeth before pulling away. He manoeuvred Scorpius back to the sofa and they both fell onto it in a heap, Scorpius struggling to get free and James holding onto him with long arms wrapped around him. Finally, Scorpius sighed and let his head fall back against the cushions, rolling it towards Teddy.

"Fine. I am your captive," he drawled. "What do you want with me?"

Teddy couldn't hold back his smile. "Just about everything, I think," he said quietly, his heart catching in his throat when Scorpius's face melted at the words. "Malfoy," he began again, trying to keep himself still and not stride over to that sofa and rip the clothing off the pair of them. "You're young, and you've finally admitted you're gay."

James grinned.

"You are well within your rights to want to go out and try different cocks on for size."

"It _is_ rather ace," added James. "Young, firm, eager – I got my share." His eyes took on a faraway look, until Teddy cleared his throat.

"Yeah. Well. If you want to do that, date other men, that's fine. That's great. You can easily go and–"

"I don't."

Teddy paused.

"I don't, all right?" Scorpius punched James in the arm to make him move, and with a wince, he complied. "Why would I want to go dig up some repressed Quidditch player who'd make me pretend to be his massage therapist, or worse, some fat old pedophile who'll want to put a skirt on me, when I could have a pair of bloody Gryffindors with cocks the size of hammers, even if their idea of navigating a relationship is something a band of cats could do better at?" He fell back against the sofa, the cushion giving an exasperated _whoosh_ on his behalf.

James glanced over his shoulder at Teddy. "Hammers?"

"A _skirt_?" Teddy ducked out of the way of the pillow Scorpius launched at his head.

"Cats?" James added.

"Okay, okay." Teddy laughed, dropping the pillow to the floor and sighing.

"What our community elder is trying very inexpertly to say," James piped up, rolling his eyes at Teddy even as he crawled into Scorpius's lap, "is that you might be a Slytherin and a Malfoy and a pain in the arse besides, but you're _our_ Slytherin and Malfoy and pain in the arse, and we don't _want_ you seeing other men, and we _want_ you seeing us and only us, and in return, we will promise to be with you and only you, and I don't know why Teddy can't just come out and say all of that without making a big production of it, but I'm quite sure it has something to do with the fact that he feels like a lecherous old pervert for falling in love with not only one irritating wanker who is far too young for him, but _two_." To end his speech, James latched his mouth onto Scorpius's neck and ground his hips down. "It's a good thing you both have me, because I'm not an idiot about anything."

Over his shoulder, Scorpius met Teddy's gaze. He looked a bit shell-shocked for a moment, but then his lips curved up. "In love?" He tried for that edge to his voice, but he couldn't reach it. Teddy heard every note of hope in those words.

Teddy could only nod, his eyes on the floor. He heard some shuffling and James cursing, and then Scorpius was on his knees in front of Teddy, seeking his gaze and tilting his chin up with his finger. He looked impossibly young and eager with his bright eyes and parted lips, his damn heart dripping down his sleeve, but he only gave Teddy a shy smile and craned his neck up for a kiss. Teddy parted his lips carefully, keeping the kiss under control and moving slowly against Scorpius's mouth. He pulled away reluctantly, swiping his thumb over Scorpius's lips, and then moved his palm up to cup the kid's cheek.

Behind Scorpius, Teddy could see James stirring.

"It's official now, right?" James looked between them. "There's you and me, always, but now there's me and him, too, and him and you, and so, we've got to celebrate, don't we? Do this right."

"Do what right, exactly?" asked Teddy slowly, his cock already interested but his mind wary of any plan of James's.

"Teddy," said James softly, mischief dancing in his eyes. "Go take your clothes off and kneel on the bed."

Teddy blinked at him.

Scorpius only moaned, his eyes wide. He sat back on his heels, still staring open-mouthed at James.

Teddy dipped his head down. "You've never heard him give orders before?" he murmured. Scorpius's eyes widened even further, and Teddy grinned.

He rose and followed James's command, peeling his clothes off and glancing behind him at the two young men huddled near the sofa, whispering together. James was cupping Scorpius's ear and murmuring things Teddy couldn't hear, and Scorpius was getting more and more flushed. His trousers were also tenting more than they had been before.

A hiccup of mischief interrupted Teddy's thoughts. "It'll never work, what you two are plotting," he called to them. They both turned, squinting.

"What won't?" said James. "You don't even know what I told him."

"I can guess." He couldn't, actually, but it was entertaining to play with James's overactive imagination. "And you're both daft. Let's all remember that I bottom pretty much–" images of sinking down on Draco's cock unhelpfully flashed through Teddy's mind – "never. The idea's amazing, but you'd never fit, not both of you."

Both their faces lit up at the thought. Scorpius collapsed against James's shoulder, mashing his face in and groaning in agony. "Oh, God, _what_?" He clutched at James's shirt. "Let's do _that_."

James drew Scorpius close while shooting an amused glance over Scorpius's shoulder at Teddy. "Nice try, Lupin. I haven't the patience for that, though, and Malfoy here'd only come all over himself before he could fit it in, so we're not–"

"I would not."

James shot him a pointed look.

"Okay, I might. But then you could just wait five bloody seconds and I'd–"

"I just _told_ you the plan," said James, still glaring, but he was also still sitting on the floor with Scorpius's shoulders looped under his arm, so the vitriol in his tone didn't carry much weight.

"Oh, all right." Teddy smirked, settling back on the bed and waving one hand at Scorpius. "I've got a good view. Why don't you just fuck Malfoy again?"

Scorpius shrugged, pulling back from James and starting to tug his shirt off. "Okay."

James grabbed the shirt. " _No_ , not okay. We need to do something different, something for the three of us." He looked so earnest that Teddy's heart warmed just watching him.

James rose and grabbed Scorpius's hand, leading him to the bed to join Teddy. After waving his wand, James approached the bed with a predatory look, one hand swirling a red and gold tie, the other two silver and green ones. Teddy eyed them and then glanced at James sceptically. "Really?" James smacked him on the arse.

He started with Scorpius. "Clothes off," repeated James, and Scorpius rushed to comply, tripping over his trousers and pants and leaving half his shirt hanging from one arm as he crawled on the bed. "Sit up against the headboard." He fastened the Gryffindor tie around Scorpius's eyes, letting a stream of red and gold drift down over his cheek and neck. His fingers trailed down Scorpius's chest and stomach and then flitted only lightly over his dick, which was swelling at a comical pace.

He was even more beautiful than Teddy could have imagined. "Christ," he muttered to James.

Grinning at him, James leaned over the bed from where he was still standing and brushed his lips over Teddy's. "Just wait," he murmured, his cheek soft against Teddy's.

"What are you two doing?" called Scorpius. "I can't see."

James sighed. "God, just shut up for two seconds and _wait_ , would you?"

"Scorpius," Teddy added gently, nudging James and giving him a pointed look. "He didn't blindfold you to leave you out."

"Oh." James paused with ends of one of the Slytherin ties clutched in his fists. Crawling over to Scorpius, he leaned down to kiss up his chest and neck, Teddy watching in wonder as Scorpius immediately and visibly released the tension in his shoulders and gave James a shy smile. When James reached Scorpius's mouth, he pulled Scorpius's bottom lip between his, giving him a slow, wet, steadying kiss. "Have you already forgotten the plan?"

"No, but–"

"Not leaving you out," James promised against Scorpius's mouth. "Just be _patient_ , all right?"

His face flushed, Scorpius nodded and settled back against the headboard, his head tilted to the side as if waiting to pounce on any sounds that came his way.

James moved back to Teddy and reestablished his grip on the green tie. James leaned in to kiss Teddy as well, and it was the last thing Teddy saw before James wrapped the tie over Teddy's eyes and knotted it behind his head. His vision faded to black sparked with random patterns of colour, and then the room went quiet.

"Now for mine," said James softly. There was a pause and a shuffling of cloth, and then he added in an amused drawl, "You can look, if you want to make sure."

Both Teddy and Scorpius peeled a corner of their blindfolds away, gazing at the green and silver cloth pulled tight over James's face as well. Teddy felt a surge of warmth at James for the very idea, as well as a deep sense of arousal at the thought of how this was going to _feel_.

After that it was only touch, a whirlwind of touch.

They were all tentative at first, and a few elbows landed in cheekbones, earning some choice words and an extended tussle against the covers, but after a few minutes they all worked out how to proceed, slowing down enough to take care with each movement to heighten the eroticism of the entire experience. They shifted positions, mixing up where they had last seen each other on the bed. It didn't take long before Teddy realised why James thought this would be the perfect way to celebrate their newfound triad.

He could guess, but he never knew for certain whose hands were touching him, whose mouth was moving down his body, whose cock was brushing over his. He could identify James and Scorpius's lips easily enough, the taste of each of them sparking memories of the last time he'd kissed them. He also knew from experience that James loved to skim his teeth over Teddy's nipple or press three fingers against Teddy's balls to make him gasp just so. But learning what Scorpius might like to do was a revelation, and soon Teddy found himself lost amid the sensations, unable to guess which fingers might belong to Scorpius and which might be James simply trying something new.

It didn't matter.

It was an astonishing thing to feel so safe and contained but still free, his hands moving cautiously over every bit of skin he could feel around him. It wasn't some impersonal orgy, with random body parts shoved in his face; this was James and Scorpius, their hands light but sure over his body and their moans deep and desperate against his skin. They didn't speak, as if they all understood that would break the spell. Teddy could tell that both James and Scorpius wanted to at various times, the mouthy little brats, but they held themselves in check, showing how they felt in movements rather than words.

A delicate tongue moved down to Teddy's nipple while a strong hand wrapped around his cock, and he had to steady his breathing and try to control the flutter of desire clouding his mind. His own fingers found the cleft of someone's arse. He traced it quietly for a moment before growing bolder, silently conjuring a bit of lube and sliding down the crease. That earned him a low groan and the sharp tang of fingernails over his thigh. This wasn't about fucking, though, not really, and so Teddy only played, not concerned with serious preparation. He circled his slippery finger around the hole, nudging it inside just a little bit before pulling out again and repeating the move. Increasingly desperate noises came from his right side, and then a hot mouth slid over his dick.

He clenched his jaw to stop himself from speaking, but a slow, " _Fuck_ ," still escaped his lips. This got a low, breathy laugh, and the lips around his cock widened. They never made it much farther than the crown, but it was more than enough. Just the sheer wetness of it combined with the erotic sensation of not knowing who it was nearly sent him over the edge.

"Oh. _Oh_." A grunt, an attempt to muffle it, and a long, low groan. Someone was about to come, his staccato breath hot over Teddy's chest, and Teddy felt strangely helpless that it wasn't his hands or mouth that were doing it. Then a streak of wetness hit his thigh and a body slumped against him, panting, and the mouth over his cock increased its suction. He didn't know where to put his hands to find the right body that still needed them. He slid them over as much skin as he could find – a shoulder, down a chest, over a thigh. Then another hand helped him, threading through his fingers and guiding him until he closed his fist around a hot prick, damp with precome and desperately hard.

There was a muffled gulp and steady breathing beside him, and Christ, the tongue over his own cock was increasing its pressure, a firm hand gripping his base, and Teddy thrust his hips forward even as he began to stroke the cock in his hand. Lips slid up his neck and fingers danced over his nipple, and that tongue, _Christ_ , lapping at the underside of his cock while that tight fist did the rest of the work, it was going to kill him. The hips under his hand began pumping up against him in jerky motions before stilling completely.

A pool of wetness seeped over his fist as a long hiss and a shuddering breath sounded at his left shoulder, and oh man, were James and Scorpius fucking _kidding_ him with this? It was like every fantasy he'd never known he'd had coming true all at once. "Fuck," he gasped again, his dick already starting to pulse against the heroic mouth, the fist closing in hard around him. He still didn't know who had just come in his hand and whose lips were swallowing him down, and that sent a new jolt down his spine. He poured himself into that mouth, shuddering and panting with flashes of colour exploding behind the darkness of the blindfold.

They all seemed to slump down to the bed together, still panting, as one of them started to laugh.

"Everyone done, then?" That was James, always the leader, and Teddy grinned.

"Christ. _That_ was your big idea?"

"I'm brilliant, aren't I?"

"What'd you do with Malfoy?" Teddy turned his head, listening. A body moved close to him, and then wet lips brushed his mouth. Oh. _Oh_. He gripped the back of Scorpius's neck, hauling him in close and tasting himself on his tongue.

He pulled back and shoved the tie up to his forehead, blinking at the light. In front of him, Scorpius sat back on his heels, his blindfold pushed up as well, trapping damp blond tendrils against his forehead. He was gazing at Teddy almost shyly and wiping the corners of his mouth. His eyes fluttering closed and a desperate moan falling from his lips, Teddy launched himself forward and captured that stained, pretty mouth, kissing his own come off Scorpius's lips.

"Jesus, Malfoy," he muttered, laughing against his lips, and Scorpius bit at him playfully.

"What, didn't think I was up for it?"

"The worst was when he tried mine first," James piped up, "but then pulled off to go searching for the bigger one. That's _cold_ , mate."

Scorpius rolled his eyes.

Stretching himself out over the bed, Teddy settled into a comfortable position with one leg pressed against Scorpius's and the other kicked up over half of James's pillow. James, meanwhile, had already sprung up from the bed and pulled his shorts on. He was in the kitchen in another five seconds, rummaging through the fridge.

"Are you making sandwiches?" called Teddy, his eyes closed and what was probably a ridiculous grin on his face.

"No, and you can bloody make your own."

"Don't put tomatoes on mine. And Malfoy seems like the type who needs his toasted." He cracked one eye open to check that, and Scorpius glared for a moment but then gave him a shrug of agreement.

James muttered at them from the kitchen that he wasn't a bloody house-elf, but Teddy tuned him out. Turning onto his side and propping himself up on one elbow, he ran light fingers down Scorpius's thigh. Blissed out beside him, sticky and sweaty and so beautiful it almost hurt to look at him, Scorpius gave him a lazy smile that turned into a yawn.

"So," murmured Teddy, wetting his lips. "Stay the night?"

Scorpius's lips parted and he looked at Teddy with a little spark of wonder in his eyes. A moment later, though, mischief had already overtaken any shard of emotion he'd displayed. He rolled onto his stomach, nestling himself against Teddy's chest. "Depends how good that sandwich is."

***

Teddy woke sometime before dawn, if the shadows tinged with pink filtering in through the curtains were any indication. He lay still, his eyes closed, and let the memory of the previous night wash over him. He longed to open his eyes and confirm that it hadn't been a dream, but something told him not to.

That something might have been the rhythmic movement of the bed, now that he thought about it, and the hushed gasps coming from his left side. His heart speeding up, he cracked one eye open.

"Shh." James's lips were right up against Scorpius's, just shy of kissing him. Their foreheads were pressed together and their breath mingled as James tried to keep Scorpius quiet. Teddy's glanced down the bed as best he could while still feigning sleep, to find the sheets pooling around the small of James's back as he moved over Scorpius with a telltale slant to his hips.

Not much question about it. They were definitely fucking.

Teddy wasn't sure how they'd managed preparation _and_ penetration before he'd woken up, but now that he was awake, he wasn't sure what to think. He couldn't deny that his first feeling was that he'd been left out. He watched them with a sinking heart, suddenly feeling old and expendable next to these two bloody teenagers, one of them still only discovering his sexuality. But if he was truly angry and jealous, he reasoned, he would have shouted at them by now, wouldn't he? Stormed off and torn the sheet off in a strop?

But he didn't. He kept still, closing his eyes swiftly if he thought they were looking, but mostly watching how secure they were in their own little world together.

James leaned a bit towards the middle of the bed, towards Teddy, hitching Scorpius's leg up over the edge. Teddy watched him push forward again at that angle, watched Scorpius's neck muscles tense as he arched against the pillow. One of his hands was tight around the back of James's neck, the other hidden under the sheets and presumably stroking his prick. They were moving agonisingly slowly, barely making a sound except for thick breathing and the occasional slippery moan. Teddy had to hand it to them. He might have slept through the whole thing.

Maybe he _was_ old and expendable.

"Fuck, Malfoy." James was biting at Scorpius's bottom lip as he sped up, thrusting in smooth, deep motions that had Scorpius looking like he was about to start weeping. His damp hair tangled across the pillow, and his face was flushed. He turned his head to the side, straining up to meet James, and his gaze landed on Teddy.

He held Scorpius's gaze for a moment, James's head buried in Scorpius's neck, oblivious as he rocked the bed harder. Scorpius's face began to melt into panic, his eyes darting back and forth, and so Teddy did the only thing he could think of. He gave him a slow smile. Then he reached out and traced his fingers up Scorpius's bicep.

The poor kid moaned like a freight train at that, and James's head snapped up. A guilty look crossed his face when he saw Teddy was awake. To Teddy's surprise, it was Scorpius who smoothed it out.

"Don't stop," he breathed to James, then he turned to give Teddy a shy smile in between his gasps. He reached out and took Teddy's hand, folding their fingers together in between their pillows. Teddy squeezed it, holding Scorpius firm as his body began to shudder. He cried out as he came, Teddy's fingers smashed in his.

"Teddy." That was James, muttering to himself in sobbing gasps and pressing his hips hard against Scorpius's body. "God, Teddy, this _kid_ , I can't even– I just–" He trailed off as he came, both he and Scorpius gasping. With his free hand, Teddy shook the sheets off them and watched James pour himself into Scorpius, his hips slammed up close. The sheets were warm and damp, the air thick with the odour of men and sweat and sex.

Teddy's dick swelled under his fingers as James sat back on his heels, his dick slowly pulling free of Scorpius's body. Teddy reached out and traced his fingers through the come on Scorpius's stomach, a lazy touch that had both Scorpius and James gasping as they watched.

"Lupin," said Scorpius quietly, his body arching up again and his lips parted. "Come on." His gaze dropped to Teddy's prick, large and full in his hand.

"Jesus," muttered James, shifting to the end of the bed and wiping the back of his wrist over his brow. Scorpius rolled onto his stomach and gathered the pillow under his chest, wrapping his arms around it.

"Well?" That petulant edge crept back in his voice. "Are you going to show me what that werewolf cock of yours can do, or what?"

Teddy closed his eyes for a moment to steady his arousal. "You're getting come on my sheets," he muttered, but they both ignored him. The kid wasn't ready for this, not yet. He glanced back at James. His lips were parted and his chest heaved as his eyes took in Scorpius's waiting body. On impulse, it seemed, James reached out and traced his fingers lightly over Scorpius's arse, dipping into his hole.

"You need proof I'm ready?" said Scorpius, but the bite to his words came out breathless. "You just fucked me, Potter, or don't you remember? Don't tell me there's any better preparation than that. Now get the werewolf over here."

Teddy groaned, his hand joining James's and smoothing over Scorpius's arse. He glanced up and met James's gaze. James pulled his lower lip under his teeth as if pondering it all, but then he broke into a predatory grin. He leaned forward and kissed Teddy, his fingers brushing over Teddy's where they began to finger Scorpius together. "He's right," whispered James against Teddy's lips. "And he wants you."

"James–"

James kissed him harder. When he pulled back, he rested his forehead against Teddy's, his breath warm over Teddy's cheek. "I want him to know what it's like with you," he said softly. "How good it is."

"Listen to your boyfriend, Lupin," Scorpius piped up, one cheek still resting against the pillow and a lazy smile on his face. "You two keep bringing me here and showing me all the brilliant things you want to do to my cock, and yet you never let me have yours. Is it gold plated or something? Come on."

"You want to shut your bloody mouth?" Teddy shot back, closing his eyes again to control himself. "You don't know why we haven't."

Scorpius raised his head again, giving them both an impatient look. "Oh, because it's such a monstrosity, you don't want my head to pop off my shoulders when you push in. How sporting of you."

"You're joking now, Malfoy," said James with an amused shake of his head, "but you don't even know what you're in for."

The joking seemed to get zapped out of Scorpius at that. His eyes fluttered closed and he put his head down again, stretching his body out to be on better display for Teddy. "If you don't," he murmured into the pillow, "I'm going to go mad from dreaming of it every night, so, _God_ , do you want me to beg? Fine. Come _on_ , Lupin. Fuck me with that monster cock of yours. _Please_."

Teddy was about to start whimpering, his cock ached so much. A light fist wrapped around it while he gazed down at Scorpius, and he shot James a grateful look.

"Go on," murmured James. "He can take it, and Christ, but I want to see."

"James, we don't have to do this. I never meant to–"

"You never meant to tell me your fantasy? Bollocks. I asked for it, and I heard it, and you can't be scared to tell me things. Right? You have to tell me things. _Everything_." His voice was low at Teddy's ear, and Teddy could only close his eyes and moan, wondering what on earth he'd ever done in his life to deserve happiness and pleasure like this.

"It's something _you_ do for me – only you. We can keep it that way. We'll find other things that are just for him." He nodded at Scorpius.

But James shook his head. "I don't want to keep it that way," he insisted. Teddy searched his face. He'd said words like this before, after all, and hadn't meant them. Teddy couldn't go through with anything again that would hurt James like before. Never.

"This will change everything," Teddy warned in an undertone, but James only shook his head.

"No, it won't." He grinned. "And even if it does, that's a good thing, isn't it? We've already changed everything." He glanced down the bed at Scorpius, who was watching their exchange with a worried look creasing his face.

"So that's the reason," murmured Scorpius, his jaw tight. "It's got to stay between you two? Okay. I understand." He started to push himself up, but Christ, that kid had better not ever find himself in a poker game, because every ounce of disappointment was dripping from his features.

James stopped him with a firm hand between his shoulder blades. "No." He leaned down, his lips moving up Scorpius's back. "We joke about it," he murmured against Scorpius's skin, "but the fact is that not a lot of blokes can take a cock like that, okay? Not a lot want to."

Scorpius's breathing sped up, and his eyes fluttered closed.

"But _I_ can," James added, his voice low as he bit at Scorpius's neck, "and I fucking love it, and yeah, I loved that I was the only one he got to do that to. But you want it too, don't you, Malfoy? You _really_ fucking want it."

Scorpius gasped, his body beginning to writhe underneath James.

"I think you'll be able to take it just fine," he whispered, and Teddy had to take a deep breath to steady himself at that. "And I want to see it."

Scorpius twisted, searching James's face. "Yeah?"

James nodded, a slow grin overtaking his features, and there it was, _Christ_ , Teddy had seen that look before: that one was genuine, the real James when his eyes were dark with desire and his body was coiled tight with anticipation. "Come on," James said to Teddy, throwing another heated look over his shoulder. "He's ready."

"I'm ready," Scorpius chimed in, breathless.

Teddy's fingers slid under Scorpius's thigh, nudging it up a bit higher on the bed. Scorpius complied, his arms squeezing tighter around the pillow. Teddy climbed between his legs and began stroking his palms up Scorpius's back, following with his mouth. He lowered his chest to Scorpius's back, his spattering of hair against his smooth, pale skin, and kissed the back of his neck. "So, things you've learned about yourself lately," he murmured, biting at the kid's earlobe. "The sex with men thing, yeah, that's part of it. You're loving that part, aren't you?"

Scorpius moaned into the pillow.

"But more than that, it's _this_ that really gets you hot, isn't it? I'm starting to figure it out, Malfoy, the way you beg for cock with us so much." His lips brushed Scorpius's shaggy hair where it curled over the back of his neck, his hands still smoothing up Scorpius's sides, down over his arse, and back up. "It's a thick cock up your arse that you really want, isn't it?"

Scorpius sucked in a sharp gasp, whimpering into the pillow.

"That's what you wanted from James in the first place, wasn't it? And he's good at it. Oh yeah, he knows how to fuck. Learned from the best, you know."

He could feel James grinning behind him, and felt a light slap to his own hip from the foot of the bed. He lifted his head briefly to glance back at James. He was lazily stroking his own cock again, propped up against the footboard.

"There's something I like," continued Teddy, "about me being his first, and him being yours." He mouthed more kisses up Scorpius's shoulder blades and neck. "But this–" he pulled back far enough to grasp the base of his cock, shifting it between Scorpius's cheeks. Scorpius was already writhing underneath him. "This is a whole new thing, isn't it? James fucking you, and then me fucking you? Both of us in you like that. Is that what you've been dreaming of?"

"Fuck, Lupin," muttered Scorpius. "You're not a dream, you're a fucking nightmare. Get _on_ with it."

Teddy grinned over his shoulder again, catching James's eye. At James's solemn nod, Teddy moved to his knees again. Wordlessly, James passed him the lube, and Teddy took a shuddering breath. Scorpius watched over his shoulder as Teddy smoothed the oil over his cock, taking his time and getting more than a bit of a thrill from knowing that James and Scorpius were watching him. When he felt well coated, he moved his slick fingers back to Scorpius's hole, pushing two inside.

Scorpius's head fell forward again, and he pressed back against Teddy's hand.

Teddy took his time, stretching Scorpius more than James had needed to, working a third finger in and rotating his wrist until Scorpius let out a shameless moan. Good. He was already nearly beyond words. He pulled his fingers free.

With one thumb, he opened Scorpius a bit more, guiding his cock in with the other. He had to keep his own arousal in check as he felt James's come spread over the head of his dick. He felt a bit of resistance but not nearly as much as he would have if Scorpius hadn't just been fucked wide open and then fingered even further. His entire body shuddered as he began to press in.

The thing about the size of Teddy's dick was only partly a joke, he knew. The thought of it might keep Scorpius up late at night as wank fodder, but the reality was something else. James's first time had taken the better part of an hour to get him ready, and even after that, he couldn't take all of Teddy's cock inside him that time. Teddy had offered to make it smaller, and they'd both had to stop and fall to the bed laughing at the very notion of Metamorphmagus abilities being used for something like that, but in the end, James wouldn't let him. He wanted it all. They'd practiced like bunnies of course, and now sinking fully inside James was one of life's most astonishing pleasures.

"I know what you're thinking, and don't even _think_ about making it smaller." That was Scorpius, raising his head from the pillow just enough to bark over his shoulder.

"Wouldn't dream of it," promised Teddy.

"Just," breathed Scorpius, "go slow."

Teddy exhaled as he pushed, feeling Scorpius's body yield to him bit by bit. He worked himself in gently, rocking back and forth in small movements, then stilling halfway to check in. "God, you feel good," he murmured over Scorpius's back, relishing the moan that fell from Scorpius's lips. It was still slippery inside, wet with James's come and the lube before that, and the way Scorpius was spread out on the bed, naked and gorgeous with his long limbs and flushed face – _God_. Teddy wasn't sure he could keep up this patience.

"Come on," gritted Scorpius, pushing himself up on his knees to give Teddy a better angle.

Teddy surged further in, his cock nearly completely enveloped in Scorpius's body, and he paused to breathe. His hand smoothed up Scorpius's back in soothing circles, and taking his cue, James moved around to the top of the bed to run his fingers through Scorpius's hair.

"Hey, how does it feel?" Teddy heard James murmur, his thumb brushing over Scorpius's forehead. The kid's body relaxed another fraction around Teddy at the touch, and Teddy shot James a grateful smile.

Scorpius exhaled forcefully, swallowing a laugh. "Okay. You weren't kidding. I get it now." He clenched his jaw. "But it's still fucking brilliant."

James grinned, leaning forward to kiss Scorpius's temple. "You are so hot," he whispered to Scorpius as Teddy began to move. "You've no idea how brilliant you look, all stretched around him like that, taking that werewolf dick in like a fucking professional."

Scorpius gasped, leaning in to James's touch and pushing back against Teddy at the same time.

"I like watching my own dick sliding into you, don't get me wrong, but this is just as good. Hey, I know he's bigger than me. I got over my complex about it awhile ago." James flashed Teddy another smile, and Teddy bit his lip not to laugh. James Potter had never had a _complex_ about anything in his life, and he'd certainly never compared dick sizes with Teddy. Not when he worshipped everything that dick could do to his body. "He feels so good, doesn't he?" whispered James, kissing Scorpius's earlobe now.

"Christ, James," managed Teddy, pausing to gain control of himself. He wiped his damp face and glared. "You want me to come in two seconds?"

James shoved his hand further into Scorpius's hair. "Just trying to keep him relaxed," he shot back. "You want him nice and open and easy to fuck, don't you?"

Both Scorpius and Teddy groaned at that, and Teddy pushed in a bit harder. He could feel Scorpius taking every inch of him in, the walls closing around his dick and squeezing. Hot, wet pleasure enveloped him. "Yeah," Teddy ground out. "I do." Finally he paused, fully sheathed, and ran his palm over the small of Scorpius's back. Scorpius's body fluttered around him, resisting and welcoming him at the same time. It was almost too much, the sight of his prick finally inside him like this, just like in all his fantasies. He glanced up at last when he realised he'd been still for too long.

Guilty, he chanced a look at James, but he was only biting his lower lip and giving him a lopsided smile. He met Teddy's gaze and nodded. Scorpius, for his part, seemed to have had all smart retorts pressed right out of him. His face was damp and his eyes hooded. When he looked back over his shoulder at Teddy, he was pulling in air through his parted lips, already looking completely debauched.

"It's okay," murmured Scorpius, breathing hard. "I– you can keep going."

"I'm in," said Teddy, rotating his hips a bit to make sure Scorpius could feel his hips pressed against his arse. "That's all I've got." Both James and Teddy gazed down Scorpius's body and then up at each other.

"Are you _kidding_ me?" mouthed James, his jaw dropping, and Teddy huffed a laugh, his body completely on fire. Jesus Christ. Scorpius had taken him all in, the first time, with barely a whimper. _  
_  
Scorpius exhaled a short breath. "Oh." He grinned over his shoulder. "Good. Then just– show me." He gasped as Teddy slowly began to slide out.

"Like this?"

"Yeah."

Teddy drew his prick out, red and wet, Scorpius's walls clinging to him, and then nudged back in, infuriatingly slowly. "You're wet from James," he whispered, delighting in Scorpius's tortured moan. "I can feel him inside you."

" _Fuck_ ," Scorpius choked, falling to his elbows and burying his head in James's lap. James only sat quietly, stroking Scorpius's hair and shoulders and murmuring filth in his ear.

"He's overwhelmed," said James softly, his fingers surrounded by damp blond strands. A grin overtook his face as he glanced at Teddy. "Your cock does that to people, you know."

Teddy was panting too much to respond, but he shot James his best withering look. He pushed back in, using all his effort not to slam in too hard and hurt him. After a few more slow thrusts, though, Scorpius squirmed against him, meeting him halfway. "Go slow," Teddy said to him, but Scorpius shook his head, his fingers clenched over James's thigh.

"More," he whispered.

"Don't want to hurt you," said Teddy, barely getting the words out.

It wasn't the time for jokes about the size of his cock, and Teddy was grateful that both James and Scorpius seemed to know that. The air in the room was close and hot, as if every panting breath was coating the walls. Teddy increased his speed, gathering a rhythm and rocking into Scorpius a bit harder. He was nearly overcome with emotion, after having waited so long for this and indulged so many fantasies, but it was more than just the sex. The sight of James soothing Scorpius through it was what was really doing it for him, the three of them sharing this thing that on the surface might only have been between Teddy and Scorpius.

"Teddy," Scorpius gasped, and Teddy shuddered to hear his first name like that. He smoothed his hands over Scorpius's hips, his thumbs tight against his arse. Wide open like this, Teddy could see every push inside, his cock disappearing into Scorpius's body just as a new moan escaped Scorpius's lips.

"Louder," he said on a whim, suddenly desperate to make sure this was all right, that Scorpius really wanted it, that it was good for him.

"Tell him how it feels," murmured James, his hand now intertwined with Scorpius's and their fingers clenched together as the intensity increased.

"I can't," muttered Scorpius, his mouth open and his back muscles flexing. "Oh God, I can't, I don't know what to say."

There was no brattiness there anymore, no arrogance, only pure, naked honesty.

"It hurts a bit, but then it's so good, right when you– _oh_ , God, Teddy."

Teddy slid in again, harder this time, trying to find an angle that might hurt a bit less.

Scorpius punched the bed, burying his face in the pillow, and James winked at Teddy. "Like that," whispered James. "Fuck, yes. Look at him. You're going to fuck him into little pieces."

Teddy sped up. The bed creaked, and James kept murmuring to Scorpius, and Scorpius kept groaning and pushing back, and Teddy's prick could barely take it anymore, and he was slamming forward harder than he meant to, harder than he should, the sight of James's hand crushed in Scorpius's making his balls tighten and his prick pulse. He grasped Scorpius's hips and ground himself forward, and then he was coming, fast and hard inside Scorpius's tight body, and the thought of following James's come in there gave him a new wave of pleasure.

He clutched Scorpius to him and rocked him up into Teddy's lap, his chest tight against Scorpius's back, while James reached for Scorpius's prick. Scorpius was wound tight, his stomach clenched and his thighs working as James fisted his prick. In seconds, Scorpius was groaning and spilling over James's hand, white strands coating James's fingers.

"Oh, God," muttered James, immediately bringing that hand to his own prick and jerking himself hard and fast. He surged forward and mashed his lips to Scorpius's, who laughed in surprise despite the fact that Teddy had to hold him upright or he'd topple off the bed. "Fuck," James moaned into Scorpius's mouth as he came, coating Scorpius's stomach and prick with it.

Teddy pressed his mouth to the back of Scorpius's neck and down his shoulder, never wanting to let go. They were all silent for a long moment, catching their breath, before Teddy felt his softening cock slipping free and a trail of wetness trickling out of Scorpius's spent body.

Boneless, Scorpius collapsed to the bed with a final low moan. His eyes fell shut and his breathing evened out. Above him, Teddy and James exchanged amused glances.

"There you have it, Malfoy," said James, propping himself up on one elbow and smoothing his fingers in lazy circles over Scorpius's back. "Even I haven't done that before, taking two blokes in a row. You perfect little slag." He leaned over and bit at Scorpius's shoulder. "Sore?" he murmured.

Scorpius shivered, snuggling further into the sheets. "Mmf," was all he could say.

James laughed, catching Teddy's eye again. Teddy felt fairly boneless himself. He lounged at the foot of the bed, watching James's light touches lull Scorpius to sleep before meeting James's gaze once more.

"Hell of a fantasy, Lupin," murmured James, his lips curving up. Teddy rubbed his forehead with one hand, trying to control the shiver of emotion surging through him.

"Yeah."

"Better get to work on a new one," he added, nodding down at Scorpius. "This kid's like some kind of magical cock fantasy brought to life."

Teddy grinned. That he was.

"I can hear you, you know."

"Go to sleep, Malfoy. We've got more fucking to do later."

Smiling against the pillow, Scorpius settled in again and seemed to drift off, both James and Teddy's hands smoothing light touches of reverence and gratitude over his skin.

***

 **_Week 4_ **

 

Well. This was awkward.

If Teddy had thought that any previous conversations with Harry about the state of Teddy's relationship with James had been somewhat akin to rolling out his dick for inspection and approval, those had _nothing_ on –

"It's just, Draco mentioned there'd been some men in the past, and, I don't know, I pushed him further on it, you know? And, uh..."

Teddy swallowed, drumming his fingers against the side of his watery drink. "Right," he began. _Sure, that was what happened_. "No, I know. It's a bit–"

"Right. So–" Harry gestured wildly with his hands, nearly knocking his beer over. "I thought we should maybe meet up, clear the air a little bit, so this doesn't come between us, or–"

"No! Sure. I mean, I wouldn't want that. So, yeah, this is a good idea. I should have told you, but it's just that–" Teddy gestured helplessly, then picked up his drink and took a quivering sip. Jesus fucking Christ. So, convincing Draco to come clean to Harry had clearly been the worst idea ever.

"Oh, no. That's okay."

They were both silent for a long moment.

"So was it, uh, one night? Or…?" Harry's face was a pale shade of green, and he kept gazing at a point quite far to the left of Teddy's shoulder.

One night? This didn't entirely appear to be the time to go into details of how Draco Malfoy could give new meaning to the term, since one night with him was, at least according to Teddy's experience, something like two good weeks with a normal human being with a normal dick and normal semen producing capacity, and okay, Teddy didn't precisely have _complaints_ about being unable to walk straight (har har, yes, cliché and all), or endure his raw thighs touching in any way, or even coax his dick to a reluctant state of partial enlargement for a solid three days afterwards, but it still didn't quite seem like the answer Harry wanted.

"Oh." Harry's face fell, as Teddy's silence wore on. "So, more like–"

"No! Sorry. Just– yeah. Once." He shook his head rapidly. "Not even good. Really, quite bad, actually." He glanced up. "Er– I mean, I'm sure he's very good when you're with him?" He winced. "That is, he's a lovely man. Glad to hear you two have hit it off. Er. Not my type. Very happy with James," he offered at last, nodding.

"James." Harry blinked rapidly, as though he needed a minute to process the name. No doubt the images leaping through his head of all the acrobatic sex between his lover and his godson were interfering with his concentration, for which Teddy had nothing but sympathy. "Right."

"Hey, Harry?" Teddy sighed, regarding Harry openly. "I really am happy for you and Draco."

Harry hid a grin at the name, his gaze falling to the table. He picked at the label on his beer bottle.

"And James is happy for you, too." He took a chance. "And from what I can tell, at least, Scorpius is, too. I know it hasn't been easy for you, but you do have a lot of support. Okay?"

"Yeah." Harry reached across the table to clap Teddy awkwardly on the shoulder. "Thanks, mate. That means a lot."

They chatted for another twenty minutes about work, Quidditch, and other non-explicitly-gay topics before Teddy cleared his throat and indicated he should get back to the office.

"Right, yeah," said Harry. "Of course."

Harry followed him out of the pub, and Teddy could only really, sincerely hope that Harry was not staring at his arse, wondering if Teddy had been the top or the bottom.

***

Draco might have his work cut out for him, convincing Harry that a one-night-stand five years ago did not a relationship make, and Teddy would probably have to have a few more awkward beers with him in future, singing James's praises, but Draco being honest with Harry at last _had_ had its benefits.

Namely, they'd taken an impromptu trip to Naples for the weekend, leaving the Manor in the hands of the next Malfoy heir, who was, of course, looking after it to the best of his abilities… while lying half naked in the middle of the vast back lawn, two similarly-clad men flanking him.

"God, I hope those house-elves don't have Pensieves," yawned Scorpius, stretching his arms above his head.

"Or video cameras," added James, grinning and scratching the hair low on his stomach, his underpants barely pulled up high enough to cover anything.

"Or," added Teddy, "you should hope they're never asked a direct question." He'd actually managed to get the entirety of his trousers back on before falling asleep for awhile, the sunlight warming his skin.

"Agh, good point." Scorpius tensed. The three of them might have sorted themselves out, mostly, but the issue of just how much Scorpius had told his father – or how little – still lingered. "Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe we should go back to Lupin's. What if–"

"Relax," said James, sleep clouding his voice. He rolled over and draped one arm over Scorpius's chest. "They're not coming back till Monday. And Lupin doesn't have nearly as many antiques. I still want a go on that table with the gold elephant feet."

"It was a bit hard," mused Scorpius, reaching around to rub his lower back. "I still don't see why I couldn't have just bent over it, rather than having my leg up on the tusk like a–"

"Would the pair of you shut your pie holes for one second and enjoy the peace and quiet?" Teddy turned his head on the grass to glare at them before gazing up at the perfect sky again, wisps of cloud floating along.

After a few rounds of annoyed huffing, he felt fingers move up his chest. He opened one eye to find Scorpius snuggled up against him, blinking innocently. "Sorry," he murmured, a grin playing at his lips.

Christ. There was no possibility of resisting that damn kid. Teddy sat up on one elbow and manoeuvred him back down to the ground, hovering over him. He pushed a strand of blond hair out of Scorpius's eyes, his fingers trailing down his cheek, before he leaned down and kissed him. It was gentle, almost sweet, and Teddy tried to infuse it with emotion rather than pure lust. He needed Scorpius to know he mattered. He needed them both to know.

When he pulled back, Scorpius was smiling shyly at him, his cheeks flushed.

"Oi, Malfoy! Pay it forward, eh?" James broke the mood by swatting Scorpius on the shoulder, and Scorpius pulled back from Teddy, throwing an exasperated glance over his shoulder. But he obediently shifted to his other side, propping himself up on his left elbow and leaning over James.

Teddy sat up a bit more himself to get a better view, as Scorpius lowered his head and brushed his lips over James's. With a shameless moan, James pushed one hand up through Scorpius's hair, lodging it in thick blond strands at the back of his head and drawing him down to deepen the kiss. They were beautiful together, Teddy decided, Scorpius's pale hair stark against James's dark, both of them young and eager and completely enamoured with each other, despite their bickering.

He searched deep down for that old flare of jealousy but found nothing, only confidence and contentment with the knowledge that they wanted him just as much as he wanted them.

Scorpius sat up again, grinning down at James and punching him lightly in the arm. "There. Satisfied?" James only fell back to the grass, smiling as his arms flopped down on either side of his head.

"You'll do," he said, but Teddy wasn't done with him yet.

"Hey," he called. James cracked an eye open, and Scorpius glanced back at him, smirking. When he had their attention, Teddy cocked his head to the side and curled his index finger, beckoning James.

Still grinning like an idiot, James got to his knees and crawled around Scorpius to Teddy's other side, flopping down again.

"That's better," said Teddy, leaning down and kissing him breathless. James's arms immediately came up to wrap fully around his neck, drawing him down until their chests were pressed together and Teddy could taste James everywhere. There. Now it was complete. He lifted himself away again to James's protests and lay down on his back once more. They both fell quiet on either side of him, Scorpius moving to rest his head on Teddy's shoulder while James kicked playfully at his ankle.

The grey-blue of the sky melted into wisps of cloud overhead, shadows of sunlight weaving in and out as they lay there. It was the most peaceful Teddy remembered feeling in ages.

He figured he deserved it. After all, it had been a hell of a month.

 

-fin-


End file.
